


Behind Closed Doors

by StarvingLunatic



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Artists, Businessmen, Cheating, Drama, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Extramarital Affairs, F/M, Heterosexual Sex, Marriage, Novel, Romance, Secrets, Sexual Content, Shower Sex, Sisters, Unhappy, Unhealthy Relationships, Vacation, Wordcount: 100.000-150.000, Wordcount: Over 100.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-08-04
Updated: 2006-10-14
Packaged: 2019-04-23 07:17:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 103,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14327370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarvingLunatic/pseuds/StarvingLunatic
Summary: AU. Kikyo is married and she's in love with Sesshomaru. Well, what's the problem? She's not married to Sesshomaru.You can find the sequel to this,Out in the Open.





	1. Living the Life

**Author's Note:**

> I don’t own these characters. Y’all know that by now.
> 
> A/N: This is also a present day AU.
> 
> Come say hi to me on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/SL-Kassidy-482097488469386/).

Behind Closed Doors

1: Living the Life 

Sesshomaru sighed as he put his cell phone down on the nearest surface after quite an annoying call from work and silently decided he hated his job. It was a reoccurring theme within his mind, sometimes repeating in his head every hour. Well, why have a job he utterly loathed? Because he enjoyed having a steady paycheck, which many people could not comprehend. Sesshomaru had a trust fund that could feed him and a building of people for a few lifetimes, so it was not like he required money. He was also set to inherit his father’s business, along with most of the great dog demon’s lands. So, most people did not understand why Sesshomaru bothered to work at all, especially doing a job he disliked.

The noble dog demon simply liked being self-reliant. He liked to be able to do things for himself. He wanted to pave his own way in this life and build his own image on his own accomplishments. Not to say he was not going to take over his father’s things when the time came and he was definitely proud to be his father’s son for the most part, but at the moment he was a mature adult demon and he believed he needed to act as such. So, he had a horrible, horrible job, just like any adult would have.

What did the glorious Sesshomaru do to bring in the dollars? He worked for an advertising firm. It was a top firm, but still seemed lacking in too many things. He had too much education in his opinion to have even considered taking such a job, even though it was in his field and claimed the degrees he had were necessary. He did not think he should even need qualifications to do such work, at least not here. But, it seemed he had been in school long enough and these people were hailed as sophisticated and the top of their field, so when he spotted an opening, he took it. _What the hell was I thinking then?_ He massaged his forehead with two fingers.

No one would guess he actually hated his job as he did it so well. How could he not? Whenever he did something, he made sure to put his everything into it and his everything was perfection. People seemed to understand that. They would admit they did not understand why he did his job so well with his antisocial personality and everything. How did he figure out what people liked? How did he figure out how to tap into people’s minds to get them to want something? But, he seemed to know how to handle his accounts and he had plenty of clients. He still disliked his job.

So, why do a job he despised? He could get money in so many other ways. He could build a reputation in so many other ways. But, this job catered to one part of his personality he would not compromise on. He was an artist at heart and trained as such. He mostly sketched and painted, but he wanted to practice his art as often as he could and this career allotted him that opportunity.

He occasionally created something worth hanging in a gallery and he had a few works gracing galleries with their presences. He was often commissioned by demon nobility to do works for them. But, he learned such an existence would not yield the steady paycheck he carved. So, he went somewhere he could get in some practice while gathering a stable income.

Most of his work dealt with graphic designs. He had a dynamic style that caught his clients’ attention and they believed the style would grab consumers’ attention as well. They seemed correct. Sesshomaru was a hot commodity in graphic designs.

Of course, his job required more than coming up with eye-popping designs sometimes and he was mediocre at best in the other aspect of his work, not that he would ever admit such a blasphemous thing out loud. He had to come up with slogans on occasion to go with his designs and he found that to be extremely irksome, especially since he typically did not know what was catchy or if anything was popular. He was pretty much anti-popular culture.

Usually, he cheated when it came to the slogan aspect of his job in his opinion. He listened to his clients and what they wanted for their account, no matter how stupid the idea seemed. He then took their ideas and came up with several different pictures from their notions. He then got outside help on the slogans and also what design worked best. He called in his siblings or his stepmother. They understood what people liked and they tended to know what was popular.

Sesshomaru tended to act like he did not value anyone’s opinion, especially not his wretched simpleton of a half-brother. But, in truth, when it came to normal things, he went with what his idiotic and often childish brother thought. So, he tended to show Inuyasha his designs and let the bigmouth do what he did best, express his ridiculous opinion very loudly and crudely about slogans that went with his favorite designs. He figured with Inuyasha being like the average peon on the street, then whatever caught Inuyasha’s attention, it would logically also catch the attention of most other people. The reasoning seemed to work with the way he continued to have clients.

Aside from Inuyasha, Sesshomaru also used his little sister, Rin. She was a spark of help and she loved doing it. Where Inuyasha could tell him what a young man or just an adolescent might like, Rin was perfect for testing things out that were targeted at children or youngsters just hitting the teenage years. She could not come up with crazy slogans like Inuyasha could, but she knew the right colors and images to catch a child’s eyes and that was enough.

His stepmother served the same purpose, but to help him get the idea of what human women liked, even though she was a bit more difficult to work with than his siblings. Izayoi, his father’s current wife, had a thing where she disliked stating what was on her mind when he asked what she thought. He always took it as false modesty, as he was very aware the woman had a working brain, after all. His father would not put up with her if she was completely brain-dead, and yet she insisted she did not know something. Getting information was like pulling teeth with her, but he typically stuck it out and she would come up with things. Sometimes, he believed she behaved in that manner to tease him. He could practically smell her holding in giggles on occasion.

Despite the money and reputation building, Sesshomaru still disliked his job. There were too many people at the agency for his tastes, especially humans. Societies mixing on any level got on his nerves more than anything else. He had to deal with stupid humans, stupid demons, and peasants of all kinds out in the street, interacting and getting in his way. Maybe the whole world was just idiotic and it took a real job for him to see that. Well, actually, he had known for a while now since he had gotten out of the care of his governess. Things were not getting any easier as he continued to move about in the real world.

Sighing, he rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Who thought of mixing, anyway?” The thought was more a distraction from his true problem. 

Irking him further, he had been informed by his boss that he had a new account to handle, but there was a catch to it. He would be working with someone and that was bad enough. But, it turned out there was more to it. The person he had work with had originally handled the account when they dealt with a different firm. It seemed the new guy had stolen the account after fleeing from his other job. Yeah, that was just great.

“I’m working with a thief. Who would hire someone who made it a point to take other accounts from his previous job?” He shook the question away. He tried his best not to contemplate his boss or his decisions. Those were mysteries best left to the universe.

Sesshomaru decided not to stress over it. He would deal with it when he had to go to work, which was too soon in his opinion. He was at home in his elegant, monstrous apartment and had nothing to worry about now, except the fact his canvas was still blank.

“I can’t even blame work for that. The art isn’t coming.” He rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. He doubt it would come while he was thinking about work, so now he needed a real distraction.

He fixed himself something to eat and then focused on the white space staring back at him. He had hoped to get some painting done over the weekend, but his muse did not seem to agree, before the bad news. Who or whatever his muse was, he noted it had been absent for a while now.

He scowled. “Muses are so unreliable.”

He sighed, nothing would come to him by staring at the canvas. He decided to go in search of some inspiration, and then perhaps his unknown muse would return to him. If not, he would go be a good big brother and do something with Rin, as she always appreciated his company and he did not mind giving her attention. She was probably the only person on the planet he did not mind giving his attention.

-8-8-8-8-

“Something wrong?” Naraku inquired, speaking to his wife, Kikyo. They were on a plane, flying to their new home. Well, her old home.

“No. Why would you ask?” she countered, her voice flat and her eyes ahead.

“You look like something’s wrong,” he commented, almost as if he were amused. There was a light in his eyes, which she ignored.

“It’s nothing,” she assured him. She did her best to keep her face blank, expressionless. Partly, it was her personality, but there was also the fact that she did not want anyone, especially Naraku to be able to read her.

He chuckled a bit and smirked for no reason she could see, except for the fact that he probably enjoyed that it looked like something was wrong with her. Sometimes, she believed he could sense trepidation from her and he delighted in it.

Kikyo focused her cocoa eyes out of the window and ignored her husband, even though she had to look across him to see the window as he had taken the window seat. There was nothing wrong. She was secretly happy they moved because they were going back to her home city. She would get to be near her sisters, cousins, and old friends. It was a very pleasing thought and she could not wait, but she contained herself. 

Had Kikyo showed any signs of happiness, she was certain her husband would try to ruin her mood. He might even plot against her to ensure this move ended up making her dejected. It was just the way he was. It seemed he could not be content unless she was miserable. Most of the time, she projected a resigned look of misery to keep him from bothering her. She would not consider herself melancholic, but she would concede she was not happy. She doubted she ever would be truly happy.

Kikyo had never thought of herself as happy before. Happiness was never an emotion she tracked until she married Naraku. It was then she had realized she had been happy before he became her husband. She had not had much before he entered her life and she did not need much.

Her parents had died when she was thirteen and for a while, she had worried things would only get worse. Her aunt had come to the rescue and assured her and her sisters everything would be fine. Her aunt allowed the sisters to live with her, but they had not stayed any longer than necessary. It was painful to live with their aunt because she was their mother’s identical twin sister. It took a lot of energy to share a home with a woman who looked exactly like their mother, behaved like her, sounded like her quite often, and even had many of her mannerisms, but with shorter hair, so the sisters moved out as soon as possible.

Her aunt had understood when they moved out. The three sisters had moved into an apartment and their aunt helped them pay the rent. Her older sister, Midoriko, had gone out and gotten a job to support them. Midoriko was three years older than Kikyo and felt responsible for her and little Kaede. She wanted to support her younger sisters, but their aunt had objected to Midoriko working full-time because she wanted her niece to give her own education the proper attention. She knew her twin would want the girls to be all that they could be.

Midoriko had gone to school, as did Kikyo, and they excelled in college and beyond. Kaede, being the youngest and currently only twelve years old, was still in school and holding up the sisters’ tradition of being at the top of the class. Their aunt liked to tell them that their parents would be very proud of them. Kikyo now doubted that and she had for the year she had been married to her husband.

First of all, their family had a long history of being priests and priestesses and fighting against demons, yet she had gone out and married a hanyou. She believed a person should be judged on their personality rather than genetics, but it was not a belief everyone in her family shared. She recalled how disappointed her older sister looked when she showed her big sister the engagement ring. Midoriko had actually smacked Kikyo across the face that day and stopped speaking to her for a long while. When Naraku moved Kikyo away from home, Midoriko had revived interested in her younger sister and made sure to keep in touch with her. Needless to say, Midoriko did not trust “that hanyou scum,” which was her way of referring to Naraku.

In fact, Midoriko tried to talk Kikyo out of leaving with Naraku. But, he was her husband and he had the chance of a fabulous new job. She did not want to be the one to hold him back. There were times she wished she listened to Midoriko then, but at least moving got her big sister to reconnect with her.

Kikyo reveled in the attention from her sisters once she was out of the city because while she effortlessly met people, she did not make friends easily. It made her sisters all the more important in her life. She quickly felt homesick and pings of loneliness when she was separated from her family. Naraku did not help matters, especially since his greatest joy had become arguing with her only days after they moved into their home. She started to see why her sister disliked him and she could not believe she had missed his true personality for so long.

It was hardly a week into their new home when Naraku started being himself was how she learned to look at it. He sniped at her, lots of backhanded compliments, and little complaints about everything she did. There were so many sneers, snickers at her expense, and he gained joy from her sorrow. Living alone with Naraku for almost a year away from her family was painful. It was like a million needles in her eye every day of her life. So, of course, she was pleased to be headed back to her family. It was such a relief.

They were headed back to her hometown because Naraku had taken a new job. She was unemployed thanks to the move, but she would gladly trade her job for her sisters. She had been working at a clinic, as she was a doctor. She would find work after getting a chance to enjoy her family and getting settled in.

When the plane landed, Kikyo almost smiled, but she caught herself. She followed behind Naraku as he went to go pick up his bags, while she had been able to carry on her things. Once the crimson-eyed half-demon secured his luggage, they caught a taxi and proceeded to their new home. 

The couple now lived in an apartment on the opposite end of town from where Midoriko and Kaede lived. Kikyo knew he had purposely purchased a place so far from her sisters because he hated her big sister if not as much, then more than Midoriko hated him. He also knew she would want to spend some time with her sisters and it was a taunt of his to have her as far away from them as he could while they were in the same city. Little did he know, but she only needed to be in the same city as her sisters. They would work things out after that.

The second she set foot in the apartment, her cell phone rang. She checked the number and shook her head a bit. Her sisters had to be psychic. She answered the phone in a low voice and eased away, not wanting to catch Naraku’s attention. She did not feel like dealing with him and she was very aware he would start up he saw her on the phone with her sisters. She found the bathroom and stepped inside.

“Hi, Kikyo!” Kaede chirped into the phone as Kikyo closed the door.

“Hello, Kaede,” Kikyo replied in her usual low voice. There was a joy in her tone her sister easily detected, even though most people felt she spoke in a monotone.

“Say hello to Midoriko, too. You’re on speaker,” the child reported.

“Oh. Hello, Midoriko,” Kikyo added.

“Hello, little sister. Tomorrow we will get together and have lunch. This is not negotiable,” Midoriko informed her younger sister. She sounded like Kikyo, her voice mellow and calm, yet there was a sharpness to her voice that Kikyo’s lacked. Well, she typically lacked anyway. Given the chance Kikyo could be just as forceful as her elder sister, maybe even more so, if she was worked up enough.

“Yes, big sister,” Kikyo replied. Midoriko was the only person on the planet Kikyo was almost totally submissive to. Many people joked they wish they knew Midoriko’s secret to controlling her sister. Naraku seemed to think he knew the secret, but she did not want to think about that right now.

“Oh, Kikyo! Kikyo! You’ve got to see my hamsters!” Kaede shouted into the phone and Kikyo smiled fondly a bit. She missed her sisters so much and wanted to see them as soon as possible.

“She allows these rodents to wander freely through our apartment. I think I shall buy a cat,” Midoriko teased their baby sister.

Kaede gasped. “You can’t!”

Kikyo almost laughed, but held it in. Such a noise would garner her husband’s attention, however small, so she was careful. She ducked her head out of the bathroom for a moment, checking what Naraku was doing. He wandered around their new home to find where he wanted to put all of his gaudy belongs. They had a rather large apartment for two and that was just because Naraku seemed to like to collect junk, in Kikyo’s opinion anyway.

Sometimes, she suspected Naraku’s things were trophies. She was not sure of what. There were times he would come home, tell her a story of some coworker he squashed through foul means, and add some useless bauble to his shelf. She learned through him how his morals were nonexistent, especially when it came to his career.

Well, at least, once Naraku began working, she would have the apartment to herself, not that she planned to spend much time in the apartment. They were now living in a great city with so many places that called to her. She had art museums to hit first of all, new ones to become familiar with and old ones to rekindle her relationship with, and she hoped her sisters would join her.

“Kikyo,” Naraku called her. “You’ve been in the bathroom for while.”

Kikyo groaned low in her throat. “I have to go, sisters.” She stepped out of the bathroom, locking eyes with her husband immediately. She did not want to hear his mouth for longer than necessary.

“What? Why?” Kaede cried.

“Well, Kikyo, don’t you think you should get to making dinner?” Naraku suggested with a cruel smirk on his face. “We should celebrate being in our new home, after all. Together. Alone.” It seemed that she had been having too long a conversation with her sisters and he wanted her off of the phone now, possibly by making her vomit from what he implied.

“Why is it that you like to pretend that you can’t use your phone?” Kikyo countered. She was not going to make a meal the first night in their new house. There was nothing in the place to cook. He wanted to cause a fuss, but she did not care. She would sink right to his level and she would bite back when he bit her. She was not sure why he thought she was controllable.

“Is Naraku bothering you?” Midoriko asked her younger sister.

“He is requesting a meal I won’t make,” Kikyo replied, looking her husband in the eye as she spoke.

“You will make it,” the half-demon insisted.

“Tell him to stop being a pest before I come over and purify him,” Midoriko commented and she was dead serious. All she wanted was for Naraku to provide her with the excuse and distance to leave him a smoldering pile of half-demon ashes. Kikyo was certain Midoriko already had several defenses worked out if someone dared question why she killed Naraku.

“I don’t know what your sister’s saying, but you should tell her to watch her tongue,” Naraku threatened the siblings with that line quite often. A wicked glint sparkled in his eye. He had the precious middle sister right with him and while the big sister was trying to make it to them to make good on her threat, he could always hurt the middle one, he believed anyway. He liked to believe it would be easy for him to destroy Kikyo and he believed Midoriko was on the same wavelength as he was, thinking he could harm her little sister. Every now and then, Kikyo wished he would try.

Midoriko did not think there was a demon alive who could hurt her or her little sister. Kaede still had some way to go, but she was only a child and she would eventually make it to the same level as her other sisters. The only reason Midoriko had not slain Naraku, aside from the fact that she would have go to court for murder, was because Kikyo had not requested it. She would never just outright kill her sister’s husband, no matter how much she loathed his existence. She would wait for Kikyo to take care of the hanyou annoyance unless it was absolutely necessary for her to act.

“Big sister, the battery on my phone is about to die,” Kikyo said. It was not a lie.

“Call on the house phone. It is connected, right?” Midoriko asked.

“No, that’s to happen tomorrow,” Kikyo replied.

“Just talk until the battery dies. It’s what I always do,” Kaede pointed out and Kikyo did not need to see her baby sister to know she smiled. She remained on the phone until the battery died and then she was left to play along with Naraku as he picked a fight over dinner. _He’s such a child_. In the end, he called for takeout, but only for himself. She went out to find her own meal and to avoid second-degree assault charges.

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru sighed as he strolled into his work building. Though he walked with pride in his spine and his head held high, it felt like he carried a weight on his shoulders. He was meeting with the person he would be stuck with for more time than he liked, namely more than a minute, to work on the new account. He could only hope that on his scale of annoyance, the new assignment was low, but he doubted that was going to happen.

He took the elevator up to the boss’ floor and entered the man’s office without knocking. It was a habit of Sesshomaru’s to never knock and most people had learned to deal with it. Most people had learned to deal with him while he only loosely tolerated people.

“You should work on your manners, Sesshomaru,” Totosai commented from behind his large black desk. He had his feet kicked up like he was lounging by a pool and not at work. Added to that, he had on Converse sneakers. Sesshomaru counted it as a victory that Totosai was dressed appropriately for once, but he seemed to only wear suits when there was a meeting of some kind.

“I am here about the new account,” Sesshomaru said in a clipped tone. He wanted to get to his office as soon as possible to avoid having to deal with something stupid, especially considering how his boss typically behaved.

“I know why you’re here,” the boss replied.

“Then where is this new man?” the dog demon inquired. His eyes drifted around the large office for no reason than to make a point that the new man was not there.

“Late apparently,” Totosai answered as if it was no big deal. He even shrugged.

Sesshomaru frowned. His day was not looking promising and it did not help matters that he had a boss who did not seem to care about what was professional. Well, once the newcomer showed up, Sesshomaru would straighten him out. There was not going to be any tardiness while working with the platinum-haired demon. Everything would be prompt and on time or there would be hell to pay.

The noble demon then frowned deeper as his nose caught a stench in the air. It burned his nostrils. The door opened, so, apparently, Sesshomaru was not the only one that needed to learn some manners. Then the owner of the rank smell entered, a hanyou. Sesshomaru growled deep in his throat and low, but Totosai cut him a look anyway.

“Naraku, I take it,” Totosai said, speaking the newcomer.

“That is me. Totosai?” Naraku countered.

“Yeah, come on in,” the old man beckoned his new employee.

Sesshomaru curled his lip as he realized he would have to work with the ebony-haired hanyou. Could the day get any worse? He hoped the partnership was over rapidly. The only hanyou he could stand the smell of was his brother. With his brother, the smell was the last thing he thought of because Inuyasha was always doing something moronic.

“Naraku, meet Sesshomaru. You two will be working together,” Totosai announced, like this was going to be anything but a disaster.

Naraku knew he would have to work with someone on the account prior to entering the office, but he frowned just the same. He could not believe he took all that energy to lure that account away from his last firm only for them to want Sesshomaru on the account when he was hired by this other, bigger, more prestigious agency. Apparently, they liked his artwork, among other things. He did not think the dog demon was so special, but he could not express that to the clients.

“Good to meet you,” Naraku said and he extended his hand. It was clear he was lying to the full demon.

Sesshomaru glanced down at the hand offered to him. Surely the hanyou did not think he would lower himself and shake the hand of a thieving half-breed who smelled like his blood was mixed with rotten vegetables and raw fish because that certainly was not going to happen in that or any other lifetime. It did not help he was already unprofessional with being late and looked like he was playing dress up in his flashy purple suit.

Sesshomaru turned his golden eyes to Totosai as if silently cursing the old man. He was definitely taking the new account as some kind of cruel torture. Totosai gave him a shrug, as if that made everything better. 

“I hope you two come up with some good ideas. I think you know how much this account is worth,” Totosai said with a smile.

“Let’s get this over with,” Sesshomaru said in a gruff tone. The sooner they finished the account, the sooner he could get away from the smelly hanyou. “Oh, and Totosai.”

“Yes?” the bug-eyed old man inquired.

“Let’s not have this happen again,” Sesshomaru stated.

“I can’t tell the clients how to pick their workers,” Totosai replied, throwing his hands up, and the dog demon frowned. The two employees left the office. “Man, I’d hate to be the new guy,” the old man muttered in an amused tone.

“Let’s get a few things straight, half-breed,” Sesshomaru said right outside the boss’ office.

Naraku scowled before the speech even began. Did that dog bastard just refer to him as “half-breed” as if that was his name? It seemed he would have to put the puppy in his place.

“You are to never be late while we work together. I do not care what the excuse. You are to be here on time no matter what. Understood?” Sesshomaru demanded with a hard look in his eyes.

“I don’t know who you think you are—” Naraku started, but the nobleman cut him off.

“I suppose you don’t understand. Let me explain it plainer, if you are not on time everyday, I shall travel to your home and rip your filthy stomach out because I have no desire to move on your schedule. You are on my time and you will adhere to my schedule,” Sesshomaru stated firmly.

“I think you mean the company’s schedule,” Naraku corrected the dog demon.

“No, I mean my schedule. You will be on time and you will pull your weight. We will get this project done and I will never be bothered you again, agreed?” Sesshomaru made it seem like he was asking a question, but he was actually making a statement. He was always making a statement.

“I can agree on that much,” the hanyou concurred because he would not want to be around the arrogant dog any longer than necessary.

“Good,” the golden-eyed male said and he turned to leave.

“But, since I am new to the city, I might have a hard time finding my way around, like today,” the ebony-haired half-demon commented.

“Get lost if you like, but I will not tolerate your shenanigans,” Sesshomaru informed his partner. If he wanted to play kid games, he would spend the day with the only person whose shenanigans he would tolerate, namely his little sister.

Naraku did not respond. He would not let some cocky dog demon tell him how to run his account. He was the one who brought the account to Sesshomaru, so in his opinion, the pale demon should be thanking him for bringing him work. Well, he would show Sesshomaru which one of them was in charge.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Kikyo and Sesshomaru meet each other by accident.


	2. Is It Art?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

2: Is It Art?

Sesshomaru sat at his desk and decided he hated his job, more so than he had last week and he had not thought that was possible. It was just now he had a partner to work on one account and the partner was the most annoying half-breed he had ever had the displeasure of meeting. Naraku had stolen that title from Inuyasha. Naraku was like a hundred of Inuyasha, but also did not know his place. Sure, Inuyasha acted big, but he understood his place in their family. Naraku did not understand his place in their office and that was clear from the first day. 

The dog demon tried not to let it get to him. He only had to deal with Naraku for a short while, but even the past few days he had spent with the half-demon seemed like an eternity on top of another eternity. He was not sure he would be able to survive any more time with the smelly hanyou without ripping the ebony-haired fellow apart, even though he doubted the stench would ever wash off of his hands after her tore the hanyou into bits.

And to make matters worse, he swore that ancient bug of a boss of his was enjoying his misery. He could see Totosai smirking sometimes outside of his office, as if having a good laugh at the expense of the great Sesshomaru. It was unacceptable, but for the moment, the dog demon could only suffer through his fate because of his love for a steady paycheck, the independence the money allowed him, and the fact he had no replacement job lined up. He would start looking for a new job if being teamed up was a sign of things to come.

He could easily get another position somewhere, he was certain of that. They might even pay him more. The issue was no other firm had the level of prestige this one did. Of course, continued, prolonged contact with Naraku would make the latter void against the former.

The rest of the agency did not seem to share Sesshomaru’s deep hatred of the new employee. Several of the men liked to converse with him, have drinks with him, and such. Some of the women around the place thought Naraku even rivaled Sesshomaru in good looks. It was a debate among anyone inclined to appreciate male beauty to argue who was better, Sesshomaru or Naraku. Sesshomaru could not believe his name would come up in such nonsense or someone with half of a brain could believe Naraku on his level with anything.

Naraku was a bit more well-liked around the office than Sesshomaru, mostly because he seemed to make an effort to get along with people. It was not really all that difficult to be better liked than the dog demon, though considering the fact that he was cold toward everyone at the office. But, then again, Sesshomaru had no reason to endear himself to anyone that was beneath him and he was not at his job to make friends. As far as he was concerned, he was not alive to make friends, so he did not waste his time in such ventures.

Honestly, considering the fact that people in his agency liked Naraku, to him, it was a clear sign he worked with inferior beings. How could they not smell the deceit wafting from the hanyou? How could they not see the lie form on his tongue or see the deviousness in his gaze? Sesshomaru considered he detect it more since he was cursed to spend more time with Naraku than others, who only interacted with him in passing, but he did not excuse people missing what he felt was obvious. One day, he was certain their faith in the hanyou would bite them like the snake he knew Naraku was.

-8-8-8-8-

Now, throughout the few days the two males had been working together, Sesshomaru was not the only one who developed an opinion. Naraku did not think highly of Sesshomaru and it came from before they even met. First of all, he resented the fact that the wealthy clients he had so patiently prodded away from his old firm dared to set terms with him when they found out where he was relocating. They wanted Sesshomaru to do some of his little artwork for their product. _How revolting_ , in his opinion.

“This is nothing special,” Naraku grumbled as he sat at his desk and flipped through samples of Sesshomaru’s work. He did not understand why anyone would want with this nonsense, especially this account. They made enough money to be smarter than this, in his opinion.

Naraku was not a fan of art. Sometimes, he seemed to go out of his way to despise it. He did not understand why people wasted their time looking at it. He knew that so-called artists only “created” such things because they wanted attention. He was certain that was why the self-important dog demon did his little doodles.

“And fools give into this, giving him all the attention, treating him like he’s someone,” Naraku huffed about Sesshomaru.

Beyond the samples in his hand, the hanyou checked out Sesshomaru’s portfolio work on the company website. The platinum-haired demon designed junk as far as he was concerned. He was certain he could get the same, if not better quality work from a stoner in high school, but there was no telling his clients that. So, instead of losing one of his accounts, he had agreed to work with Sesshomaru before even meeting the pompous ass. Now that he knew Sesshomaru, he was not sure if he would have made the same decision if he could go back.

As far as he could tell, Sesshomaru had a stick lodged deep up his rectum and had no plans to take it out; Inuyasha had been making the same claim for years and to think, the two half-breeds had never met. There was an air about Sesshomaru that said he came from royalty before Naraku even found out the guy was a demon prince. It seemed he thought everyone and thing should bend to his will because he was a noble.

“Well, to hell with that,” Naraku muttered.

The crimson-eyed hanyou had no inclinations to bow to anyone, especially not Sesshomaru. He was better than all of the other idiots that populated the world as far as he was concerned and he did not care about their status. All he knew was that he was the best of the best and he always had to have the best. That was the reason he had deserted his old firm.

Naraku had assumed his former agency was the best until he saw what Totosai’s business was doing. He had to move on, even if it meant moving back to his wife’s wretched home city. He would have preferred moving Kikyo further away from the city instead of back into it because she would be easier to control if she was not near her busybody older sister. But, this was for recognition and power. This was his way to the top.

“And I should be on top of everything,” he reminded himself.

Because Naraku believed he desired nothing but the best was the reason he had pursued Kikyo. He thought she would make the perfect wife. On the surface, he would admit he was right. Anyone who met Kikyo would think she was the perfect, supportive, submissive mate. She was beautiful, demure, and delicate, like an antique doll. Men were always envious of him when they saw her on his arm.

But, behind the curtain, Kikyo resisted what he tried to mold her to be. It did not matter him, though. The appearance was the important thing and everyone saw that he had a very attractive and docile wife. Well, she was docile in public anyway. He supposed Midoriko did that one thing right; she made sure Kikyo knew how to act around people. At home, Kikyo might as well have been a pale puma.

He liked that Kikyo had spirit because it gave him a goal when it came to her. He would break that woman one day. Break her utterly and completely until she was his perfect pet. He would make her act the way he wanted to and beyond. Such a goal would not have been possible or any fun if she was not so headstrong. She tried so hard to resist him that it was amusing. Sometimes, she even seemed to think she was thwarting him, but little did she know, he was merely giving her a longer leash, the illusion of freedom.

Throughout their time together, Naraku had to learn and adjust with Kikyo. She bought the front like other humans, and some demons, but her will always remained, regardless of what he did. She merely bowed to him if she had her own reasons. One day, he would take that from her to shape her into what she should be. He would make her crumble and rebuild her because he always got his way and proof of that was the fact that he was married to Kikyo.

He had wanted her from the moment he had met her after he had been in a minor accident. She had been on the street when he had gotten into the scrape and she had helped him long before an ambulance arrived. It was love at first sight for him, but it had been a rather forgettable day to her. She had not even recollected exactly who he was when he “ran” into her a few days later. He had purposely run into her, hunting her down, needing her to be his. He invited her out and poured on the charm. It was exhausting, but worth it. Now, they were where they were.

“And with a little patience, we’ll get to where we’re supposed to be. Kikyo, this job, and a climb to the top,” Naraku reminded himself. He just had to deal with that annoying dog demon for a little while.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo stood on the bus, lost in a memory of when she met Naraku. She had been on the bus that day as well and had gotten off at her stop when she heard the screech of wheels and something impacting metal. Turning around, she saw the crowd and learned several people had had been struck by a car. Medical training kicking in, she pushed to the front to help who she could and ended up treating Naraku last as he needed the least assistance. He was a hanyou and a car accident was not much of a thing to someone with demon blood. She dressed his most serious wound as they waited the ambulance to arrive, but he was never in any true danger. The other people were not hurt much either and Kikyo put it out of her mind as she handled things like that often, even though it was usually in the more controlled setting of a hospital she only just started working in.

It would have been best if Naraku had not reminded her who he was that day over a year ago. She truly had not remembered helping him in the sense that she helped a few people that day and had she kept on her way the day he ran into her, she would never have been reminded and she would not be with him now. Instead, she had lunch with him back then and allowed him to pretend to be something he was not. She even fell for the act somewhat since she was currently married to him. _What a fool I was_. In fact, she often felt like she was still the fool, reflecting on how she had come to her current status too frequently for it to be healthy.

For the past few days, Kikyo had not thought about her mistake of marrying the hanyou. She did not have the time or the inclination to do so. She had been spending time with her two favorite people, her sisters. She was on her way to meet them for lunch again when her mind drifted. They were at the forefront of her mind again when she got off of the bus, though.

“Hey, Kikyo!” Kaede called as she noticed the middle sister strolling toward her and Midoriko. They were at a sidewalk café.

“Kaede,” Midoriko somewhat admonished the child. She was smiling, so it was not a total scolding.

Kaede smiled sheepishly, blushing slightly. She was growing up to be the opposite of her older sisters, Midoriko and Kikyo noted. She was loud where they were typically quiet. She was hyper where they were mellow. She was gregarious and they were reserved. She was interested in an endless list of things while they had both had only a couple of hobbies that they focused on.

The older sisters did not mind Kaede’s personality. As long as the girl was not getting into any trouble, they were all right with her doing just about anything, as long as it was not stupid and it did not bother her grades anyway. Kaede seemed to know that without being told and always came home with some bizarre new way to kill time. 

“Good to see you again, sister,” Midoriko greeted Kikyo as she climbed to her feet. The sisters exchanged light kisses on the cheek. Kikyo then went over to Kaede and did the same. Kaede also hugged her around her waist, holding her tight for several seconds.

“I do enjoy meeting up with you two,” Kikyo informed them as she sat down at the table.

“It is fun, but we’re not going to be able to do this too much more. I got school next week.” Kaede pouted, slouching in her chair. Usually, she did not mind school. She could hang out with her friends and do all sorts of wild things with them. But, now, she wanted to be with her sisters.

“It’s all right, little one. I will be around on the weekends and after school, too,” Kikyo promised. They had so much to catch up on. 

“Really?” Kaede asked with an eager grin. 

“Can you really keep such a promise, sister?” the eldest of the trio inquired with an eyebrow ticked up toward her hairline. 

“At the moment, I can. I have no job, after all,” Kikyo pointed out. She would wait to get settled and feel out Naraku’s personality in the move, knowing he would change, probably for the worst, and then decide the best course of action for finding work.

“That’s true. You will look for work, right?” Midoriko inquired. 

“Of course. As if I would rely on Naraku to support me,” the middle sister answered. She would never rely on him for anything ever again.

Midoriko nodded. “Good to know.”

The sisters dropped that conversation in favor of allowing Kaede to tell them about how she wanted a new bike because she had ruined her last one. Apparently, according the youngest sister, one should scout out a hill before riding down it because there could be big rocks and when bikes met big rocks at decent speeds, the rock would win the contest. The older pair sighed as they listened. At least their baby sister had not been injured while riding down the hill. They wondered if she did such things because of peer pressure or just because she was _that_ daring. 

The trio ordered their lunches and changed the subject once again. Midoriko and Kikyo would rather not know what Kaede did when they were not looking. The older pair would only worry if they were aware of everything the little one did. Kaede knew she should not share what she did in her spare time, but it was fun to see the incredulous expressions on her sisters’ faces.

“Oh, sister, did you hear they opened a new museum downtown?” Midoriko asked Kikyo. 

“A new museum?” Kikyo echoed and she leaned forward, her interest piqued already.

“Museums are boring unless they have dinosaurs,” Kaede declared. She was hoping to stop a discussion about museums from rising. Her sisters were not into “dinosaur” museums. They were not even into science museums and they glanced right over Kaede’s statement, continuing on like she said nothing.

“It features mostly demon paintings with a few famous demon sculptures,” Midoriko informed the middle sister.

“Really?” Kikyo was now very much fascinated. She was a sculptor in her spare time, but she enjoyed art from all mediums. She had a stomach for demonic art, which her older sister could not fully understand. There was something visceral about it. 

Midoriko did not have anything against demon art, but most of the time, it was meant to be beyond a human’s understanding, even a human that had a deep knowledge of demons like she did. Demons tended to have higher senses than humans, so they experienced more of the physical world and they expressed that in their works. A demon would be able to grasp the expression, but a human would never be able to experience it and the meaning of the work was usually lost to humans because of that. Of course, that did not stop her from enjoying the work when she could. 

Kikyo had an odd ability to comprehend what a demon was trying to express a great deal of the time when she looked at demon art. It was a talent that made Midoriko enjoy going to galleries with her sister. She liked to get an interpretation that she could understand and help her appreciate a piece. It also let her see that despite the fact that Naraku was trying so hard to break her sister, he was not succeeding because she still held on to her love of art and healing. Kikyo was still Kikyo, even while attached to that filthy hanyou.

“Shall we go to this new museum sometime?” Kikyo asked, her eyes alight with excitement.

“Today,” Midoriko proposed with a motion of her hand.

“No!” Kaede protested, jumping up from her chair. She did not want to go to some boring museum. “I’m not wasting a day of my vacation on some boring art.”

“Fine. We’ll go tomorrow and little Miss Kaede can go play with her friends,” Midoriko commented.

“Try not to break anything tomorrow,” Kikyo remarked, speaking to the baby of the group.

“Try not to fall asleep in that boring place,” Kaede retorted as she sat back down.

Midoriko and Kikyo only smiled, even though they disliked it when Kaede got sassy. They supposed it was all right as long as she was only that way with them and she tended to only do it when they made a comment to her. They did not want her to behave so brazenly with others. They taught her better than that. They expected her exercise her manners around most people, which she typically did as far as they knew.

“Well, little sister, since you have so much to say, what it is we shall do today?” Midoriko inquired while fiddling with the straw in her iced tea.

“Laser tag,” Kaede suggested with a devilish grin. It would be quite the sight for her two dignified sisters to be in a dark place with laser tag equipment.

“Laser tag?” Kikyo echoed, tilting her hand to the side slightly. She drew circles with her index finger around the glass her lemonade. It was a strange habit of hers.

“Yeah, laser tag,” the preteen repeated.

“I suppose we could indulge the little one,” Midoriko replied with a slight smile.

“I would rather the museum,” the middle female admitted. Of course, she was certain Midoriko would prefer the museum as well. “But, I will give it up for now in favor of what Kaede wishes to do.” They loved to see Kaede happy.

Kaede grinned and clapped a little. Oh, her big sisters were going to be fun to watch. So, after lunch, Kaede led her older sisters to a place not to far away for them to engage in a bit of laser tag. Apparently, the youngest of the three spent a lot of time at the place because some of the employees knew her and greeted her as if they were friends. They were curious about her sisters. Midoriko and Kikyo stood out in the establishment. Midoriko was in a pants suit and Kikyo was dressed in an almost business-like manner. Added to that, their expressions, bland and aloof, did not seem to belong in the arcade.

“Sister, I think we should have thought this out a bit more,” Kikyo commented as she handled the equipment to play the game. She fiddled with the gun, knowing what it was, but feeling no desire to hold it, even if it only fired lasers.

“We should have at the very least asked for clarification on what it was,” Midoriko replied as she focused down on the laser gun for the game. Leave it to Kaede to take them someplace where they would not likely end up even if they were lost. 

Kaede grinned. “You guys need to try new things.”

Midoriko sighed. “The things we do for this child.” 

Kikyo nodded in agreement. So, they suited up to play the game and were let go into the play area. Kikyo and Midoriko looked around at their dark surroundings. Neither of them was up for surprises in the dark, even if it was not truly dark and it was only a game.

“So, we just shoot at those who are not on our team?” Kikyo asked her little sister.

“Yes,” Kaede confirmed.

“Will the lighting remain dim?” Midoriko inquired, scanning the area, quite on guard. She could not help it.

“Yeah,” Kaede affirmed.

“It is a bit silly. We can just sense the others that are in here with us,” Kikyo commented and Midoriko nodded in agreement.

The game began and the sisters sort of cheated. Because of their priestess training and heritage, they could sense where their opponents were, but they supposed it was all right since there were a couple of demons on the other team. The demons had similar advantages to the sisters, their senses heightened, so the battle ended up balancing out.

Kaede was a bit shocked her sisters were not bad at laser tag. They were unaware they had to fire at the flashing lights on vests that the players wore, but it had been drilled into their minds when taking archery to go for the center of their target, so they shot for the chests of their opponents and thanks to the archery lessons again, they were excellent shots.

“We won!” Kaede cheered when the game was done, her eyes glued to the game board, taking in their points from hitting the targets on their opponents. 

Her sisters were less enthusiastic once the game was over. They tucked the lesson of the day in the back of their minds—never agree to play laser tag again. At least it was over and they had the museum to look forward to tomorrow without having to worry about Kaede moaning and groaning as they toured the corridors.

“I can’t believe we lost to chicks in a suit!” someone groused.

“Yeah, suck it!” Kaede snickered.

“Kaede,” Midoriko snapped and wagged her finger at the youngest.

Kaede immediately looked sheepish, shoulders dropping, and her head ducked down. “Sorry.”

“Come along,” Kikyo said, waving the teen over. Kaede tucked herself against Kikyo’s side and showed her sisters around the rest of the arcade. 

The day ended and Kikyo returned to her home with Naraku. He was home. He often beat her home, no matter what, back when they lived across the country and now as well. She stayed out with her sisters until very late. Midoriko often tried to make her stay with them throughout the night, not wanting her to return home at all. She would not run from Naraku, though. She was not intimidated by him, even if he wanted her to be.

“You do know it’s almost midnight, right?” Naraku stated as he stood in the hallway to glare at her with those sharp scarlet eyes of his. 

“I am aware,” she answered. She had a watch and she had learned how to tell time back in the first grade like most other children.

“Why were you out so late?” he inquired. 

“I was with my sisters,” she replied as if that answered his question. It was actually her way of saying it was none of his business as to why she was out so late. 

“So?”

“So, that is why. Now, if you don’t mind, I would like to go take a shower and then go to bed,” she informed him in a clipped tone.

Kikyo did not wait for his response. She moved passed him to go to their room to retrieve what she required for her shower. Naraku frowned; he was getting sick of her attitude. She felt the same with his attitude.

-*-(Next day)-*-

Kikyo and Midoriko walked the halls of the new museum that the eldest told the middle one about. The design of the place itself earned their approval before they even noticed any of the art. 

“If only the museum down the street looked this elegant,” Midoriko commented while examining the pristine white columns at the entrance of the building.

“It would certain draw me in more often,” Kikyo replied.

Midoriko nodded. “I would actually take more open displays like this.” She motioned to the first group of paintings they saw. “Do they not understand the glare of putting every bit of art behind a glass there?” 

“I would rather they space things out better, but we should focus here. This is lovely area.” Kikyo looked around, noting the pieces were spaced well and according to the map, the galleries and exhibits were set up much better than the other museum they frequented.

They traveled through the museum, which was full of demons, who eyed the sisters suspiciously. The two ladies could hear whispers of wonder about the humans who dared pollute their museum. Why demons thought so highly of themselves, the duo would never know. The sisters ignored the demons for the most part. As long as no one attacked them physically, they were fine. They were used to whispers, anyway.

Humans and demons whispered about the sisters alike for most of their lives. They were viewed as oddities for a number of reasons by humans, like their interest in archery, even though no one believed there was a practical use for archery. Then, there was the fact that they sought to build up and control their spiritual power, as if they lived in the feudal era, many people commented snidely. Being trained priestesses, but not actually priestesses troubled people as well. The fact that they behaved so similarly, like they were twins or something of the like, but there were three years between the pair seemed to bother people. It seemed that everything about them was whispered about, no matter how trivial it seemed.

Demons whispered about the sisters because they tended to travel where most humans would not and the demons that were there noticed them. When demons whispered about them, it was because they stood out as human. Demons were curious of them, maybe even threatened by them. At least that made sense to them.

“Sister, isn’t this one of your favorites?” Midoriko asked as they came to a painting that most humans would find disturbing. It was of two wolves in a forest and one wolf was feasting on the heart of the other.

“Oh, this painting,” Kikyo sighed. The detail alone was enough to make her stare for hours. She never failed to notice something new when she gazed upon it. Unfortunately, for all her studying, it was the one piece of art, she could not understand. There was no indication the wolves represented a battle inside someone or eating the heart gave the other power. They looked identical, so it was not like the strong was eating the weak. There was a theory the wolves were comrades and the one eating the other was to show they were merging, or becoming one. She did not get it and this was possibly the only piece of art she ever viewed where she could not gleam anything deeper than the aesthetics.

“It still haunts you,” Midoriko commented. 

“When I first saw it in art class, it was even in my dreams. Every time I see this, I wonder what it is he is trying to express here. I just cannot grasp the meaning of this painting,” the younger sister replied. 

“Surely it will come to you one day,” Midoriko said.

Kikyo did not respond. She only stared at the painting and allowed it to do what it always did when she laid eyes on the piece — capture her. What was the painting trying to say? There were two possible meanings, which the artist had hinted at in an interview years ago, and no one had been able to figure out which was the true statement behind the painting. Kikyo sometimes thought the artist lied, wanting to further taunt the audience or add even more mystery to a piece that needed no such thing. The talent in the piece was more than enough for attention.

Midoriko had to pull her sister from the painting, but now she knew where her younger sibling would be when she was alone. The painting was a “Kikyo trap” in a way. She needed to comprehend that painting and she would stare at it until she did.

“There are dazzling sculptors you will love,” Midoriko promised. It was the best way to get Kikyo moving. 

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru massaged his temples and stared down at his desk. He was so bothered it hurt his brain. Naraku was a new type of annoyance. They had not agreed on anything so far and they had been working together for a whole week. He was ready to toss the troublesome hanyou out of the window. It would at least rid him of the cause of his headache, even if it might jeopardize the account. 

Once he realized he was very close to murdering the filthy half-breed, he decided he needed to calm down. He tore himself from his desk, causing Naraku to stop talking, and Sesshomaru marched out of his office, leaving Naraku sitting there with his mouth agape, like an idiot. Sesshomaru exited the building without a thought and traveled to the one place guaranteed to soothe his nerves, the demonic art museum.

The dog demon dropped a few dollars in the donation box outside of the building, needing to support his fellow artists and then strolled in, looking around as if it was his first time. It might as well have been his first time. He had gone to the museum on opening day not to long ago, but he had not been back. He liked what they had around the first day, so he had vowed to himself he would make a return trip. Now seemed like the perfect time to do so when he was considering slaying his account partner. 

He slowly strolled through the place, admiring the painting mostly. There were other works of art around the place, but he was mostly there for the paintings. He noticed something odd as he passed through a corridor. There was a lone woman in the hall. It would not have been so strange, but she was a human. He paused and arched an eyebrow.

“What in the world is a human doing in a museum full of demonic art?” he muttered to himself.

Sesshomaru walked over to her to see what piece garnered her attention. The painting before her surprised him. He suspected the scene of a wolf devouring the heart of another disgusted her. It seemed like something a human would be because she probably had no understanding of demon art, especially this particular work. 

As he got closer to her, he caught her scent. It was subtle, but he told her she was not confused or disgusted. She was not even uncomfortable. He could not understand why that was. Maybe she was lost.

“Good day,” she greeted Sesshomaru as he came to stand by her and eye the painting. It was actually one of his personal favorites.

“Good day to you,” he replied. “Is this not genius?” he asked. He was actually waiting for her to disagree, so he could explain to her why a foolish human would never be able to grasp such a piece or any demonic works.

“I suppose so,” she concurred.

He tilted his head slightly. “You suppose?”

“Until I can figure out if he is portraying the two wolves as allies and the one wolf is eating his comrade’s heart to always carry a piece of him with him or if they are enemies and the one wolf is devouring the other’s heart to possess his fighting spirit, I cannot weigh in on the genius of the piece as far as that, but the technical aspects of it are breathtaking,” she explained. It was infuriating. Why did the artist not just say the meaning?

Sesshomaru glanced down at the pale creature next to him. It seemed he had been wrong about her, not that he would admit that out loud. So, she was actually there to admire the painting and staring at it to understand it, not because she wanted to know why it was considered art. She even complimented it. _Who is this woman?_

“Well, have you ever supposed he was going for something so ambiguous?” Sesshomaru proposed.

“I can agree with that, but that is different from his usual style,” she commented.

“You are familiar with his other works?” he inquired, hiding his surprise. He had never met a human interested in demon art, even his stepmother. It usually was so beyond human experience.

“He is my favorite,” she admitted.

“How odd,” he commented. Granted he never interacted with many humans, but he never heard a human claiming a demon artist as a personal favorite.

“I know,” she agreed.

“For simply meaning or technique?”

“His attention to detail never ceases to amaze me. I prefer his watercolors to his oil paintings. I find he challenges himself more with the watercolors and it shows. The darkness he likes to present, to pull your attention to the piece, is harder to do in watercolor,” she replied.

 _Who is this woman?_ These few sentences she spoke, he could only agree with. How could this human have such insight on demon art? He considered it was a fluke.

“Have you studied this one long?” he asked.

“Since being introduced to it in my high school art history class.”

He made a short noise low in his throat. “That is quite a while to pay such attention to one painting. Do you suppose you could leave this one and walk with me through the rest of the place?” He was slightly curious of the little human because she was an admitted oddity. He wanted to see how deep her knowledge of demon art went and see if she was lying or making things up as she went along. After all, he took his art very seriously and he was not interested in being lied to.

“I can do that since I doubt I will come to an answer with this painting anytime soon. I am Kikyo,” she introduced herself.

“Sesshomaru,” he replied.

“It is a pleasure,” she stated.

He did not respond, if it was a pleasure to meet her remained to be seen. He was skeptical it would be, but he was willing to try if her artistic knowledge was deep. He was willing to try anything to keep him from returning to work and having to deal with Naraku.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Sesshomaru and Kikyo spend some time together while Naraku continues to try their nerves.


	3. Never Saw It Coming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

3: Never Saw It Coming

Sesshomaru glanced down at the petite creature by his side for about the hundredth time since he made her acquaintance no more than an hour ago. The newly discovered creature, to him anyway, was called Kikyo and she was a credit to her species. Although, he was already growing skeptical she was truly human. Yes, his nose assured him that she was quite human, but from what he could see while spending time with her, she was some new type of creature. 

Beyond the fact she knew art, she managed to pull his attention to things he never cared much about. She had knowledge of paintings, but her talent and depth beamed when they wandered by statues. Sculptures had never meant anything to him, but listening to her speak on the techniques and watching her hands move, as if she was shaping clay, he was locked in. He could listen to her for hours, be it statues or paintings.

“I saw this piece when it was on display at the modern art museum. The lighting did not do it justice,” Kikyo said as they stood in front of another painting.

Sesshomaru nodded. “I recall. There were shadows on top of the shadows you were expected to see.”

“But, the shadows from the light blended too well with the shadows of the painting.”

He nodded. “Indeed.” He learned Kikyo had seen many pieces of demonic art in person and in classes when she was in school. “The blend that was done with the shadows, the liquid effect of the darks.”

“Masterful brushstrokes, obscured by poor lightning.” She chuckled low in her throat. If he did not have such excellent hearing, he would have missed the sound. Hairs on his arm felt like they danced for a second.

“At least the lighting did not obscure the scent.”

She nodded. “It is one of the worst things about enjoying his pieces. I know the paints are chosen not just for sight, but smell and I cannot experience the aroma beyond word of mouth. I know I’m missing out on so much of the piece because of that.”

“The paint scents enhance the piece. Every smell seems to go with the image perfectly and recreates the whole thing through smell. It’s almost like having two pieces in one through vision and scent. It’s all well done.”

She sighed, shoulders dropping just a bit. “I am sure it is.”

Kikyo was the only human he had ever encountered to understand demon art beyond the basics and be able to appreciate it almost as a demon would. She was an interesting person, for a human anyway. Well, he would admit he was enjoying her company, but he was willing to bet that would not last long. She was a human, so she would probably do something to make him turn away in disgust soon enough, he suspected.

“You certainly do know your art,” Sesshomaru commented as Kikyo finished admiring yet another painting.

“I feel like I’m touching another person’s soul when I view their art. Art should connect people, be it viewer and artist or viewer to viewer. Art should remind you that you are not alone in this universe,” she replied.

Sesshomaru only glanced down at her again. His thoughts on art were not entirely the same, but he liked hearing her opinions. She had a deep intellect on the matter, which he had already grown to respect. He supposed she might not do something that would make him turn away from her. Maybe she was not human and that was why he was liking the time he spent with her.

“Kikyo, have you had lunch yet?” the dog demon inquired. He would like to examine the phenomena that was this human as well as experiment further with tolerating her.

“No, I haven’t,” she answered.

“Would you care to join me?” he offered.

“I would like to, but I have to meet with my sisters. Perhaps tomorrow?”

Sesshomaru thought about it. He did not like being turned down on his proposal, but he excused it because she really could have prior engagements for the day. He did not feel like she was blowing him off or lying to him to be rid of him. He would like to meet with her again, as she helped relax him. He had not thought of that fool Naraku since he had been with her.

“Tomorrow would be fine. Is there a place you prefer?” the platinum-haired male inquired.

“No, not really,” she answered.

“All right. Is there a place I should pick you up?” he asked.

“I will probably be here again. I have been here for the past few days,” she replied.

“Really?” he asked in a surprised tone. Well, it was a surprised tone for him. The subtle change in his voice went by Kikyo since she did not know him very well. “Is it because of that one painting?” he asked. He could tell that one particular painting was like a magnet for her attention.

“Mostly. I also still have not had the chance to see all of the floors of this place. It is monstrous,” she pointed out and motioned with her hand around the corridor that they were.

“It is. Surely you would see more of it if you didn’t take so much time on the one painting that puzzles you,” he commented.

“I suppose. I may take your word for it and admit he was trying to be ambiguous. It just doesn’t seem like something he would usually do,” she argued.

“Every now and then an artist should step away from his formula and try something different. Expressing one’s self in the same way ceases to be art after a while and is only a cry for help,” he stated.

Kikyo nodded. “I suppose. You cannot grow as an artist if you stick to one form of expression. What are you expressing then?”

“Nothing inside one stays the same or constant to always produce the same manner of art or even in the same nature. A true artist is always evolving.”

“This is true. Well, sir, I have to be going or my sisters will worry. I shall see you tomorrow when?”

“The time we met today is fine. Have a good day,” he replied.

Kikyo nodded and took her leave. He watched her as she exited the museum. He could hardly believe he made the acquaintance of quite the interesting little human and he thought he might want to keep an eye on her. After all, it was not every day he met a human who could hold his attention for as long as she had. He looked forward to his meeting with her tomorrow.

For now, though, he needed to get back to work. He was only supposed to be gone for an hour and his hour had ended almost thirty minutes ago. He strolled up the street and had the misfortune of walking next to a bus as it was pulling away and he was covered in exhaust from the vehicle. He frowned and covered his nose to avoid passing out thanks to the horrid odor, but it would cling to his clothes for far too long. He might actually be cursed.

The platinum-haired demon entered the building and the look on his face told everyone to stay away from him unless they had something very important to inform him of or they had a death wish. Everyone stayed out of his path, but stared at him. He snarled, even though he understood why all eyes were on him. He hardly ever had a hair out of place, but now he had been gone for over an hour and his suit was dirty. He made a beeline for his office, only to find out his office was the last place he would like to be. The room was still infested with Naraku. _Did he sit here and wait for me?_

“What do you want?” the dog demon inquired with a frustrated sigh as he made his way to his desk, which he had situated in the corner. He did not have to go near Naraku until he sat down.

“You smell like a bus,” Naraku noted with a curl to his top lip.

“That doesn’t tell me what you want,” Sesshomaru pointed out, leaning back in his seat to give the hanyou a proper glare. He wanted to take off his suit jacket, but he refused to seem uncomfortable with Naraku right there. 

“Have you done any work yet?” Naraku’s voice had a taste of steel in it, like he was in charge. His tone caused the full demon to frown deeper than what he was already doing.

“Isn’t that a question you should ask yourself?” the golden-eyed male countered in a bit of a forceful tone. The whole reason he left earlier was because Naraku seemed more interested in saying what they could not do rather than what he would do for the account. Everything he came up with seemed cliché and lazy. It was like he got his degree out of a cereal box. Sesshomaru could not understand why their clients wanted Naraku at all.

Needless to say, their partnership was not working out well so far. They could hardly stand to be in the same room together, so bouncing ideas off of each other was unheard of. They had been attempting to work alone and then compare what they come up with, but neither of them liked what the other did, so they always ended up back to the old drawing board. Sesshomaru feared he would have a permanent headache by the time he was done with this half-breed.

“Have you come up with a logo or not?” Naraku huffed. He was sick of the dog demon acting as if he was the one not doing anything. He had come up with several slogans he was certain would work, but Sesshomaru’s logos had not been worth the paper they were drawn on in his opinion. He really did not see why his clients desired the arrogant dog on the account.

“Have you come up with another slogan?” Sesshomaru inquired. They could not even get through the simpler parts of the account. He was not sure how they would ever make it through everything else.

The crimson-eyed half-demon frowned. He was sick of the dog demon answering his questions with a question. Sesshomaru never gave him a straight answer, which he took as a sign of disrespect. He deserved some damn respect, in his opinion.

Sesshomaru would not have cared if Naraku took his questioning as disrespectful. He did not respect Naraku. There was nothing of substance to respect, but that was not why he answered a question with a question. He did it because he did not see why Naraku was interrogating him when it was clear the hanyou had not put in any work on anything. How dare Naraku question him when Naraku had done nothing at all?

“Unless you have something to show me, you should get out,” Sesshomaru stated, turning away from his unwanted visitor. He would rather worry about getting out of his suit to avoid choking on the bus fumes, even though they were doing him a favor right now. He would rather smell the bus than Naraku.

Naraku remained in the seat, staring at him in defiance for a long moment, like this was some childish game. The noble demon was not playing around with Naraku. He stood back up, preparing to go through the irksome hanyou out of the office, but Naraku wisely exited before things came to that. Sesshomaru sighed and sat back down.

He could not help wondering how life altering it would be to simply put his hand through Naraku’s chest. It would probably be as annoying as the half-breed himself. Sighing, he rubbed his temple.

 _At least the day was not a total loss_. He had met the interesting little human and he had a lunch date with her tomorrow, so that was a plus. He would look forward to that, even if she was just a human. She was still one of the most fascinating women he had come across.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo made her way to the little café where she and her sisters continued to meet. They were waiting for her as usual. They had probably been waiting for her longer than usual, she realized. She had spent more time with Sesshomaru than she had meant to spend at the museum. It could not be helped. He was an interesting fellow.

Sesshomaru was intriguing to her because of his limited fascination with art, even though she knew he was testing her when he first approached her. Though his nonchalance oozed from him, even as they strolled through the museum. He had appeared so uninterested when she began to go on about some of the statues, but little by little, she hooked him. Statues did not seem to be his thing, not like painting. He tried to pretend he did not care, but he asked questions about the sculptures while acting as if they meant nothing to him. She felt like she had got someone interested in statues. That was quite a feat considering when he first approached her, he believed she had no clue about demonic art.

She had enjoyed his company because he was very learned about the paintings in the museum. He also had no problem with sharing his less-than-humble opinion on many pieces, but did not seem insulted by her ignorance on the subject. Unlike most demons, he tolerated the fact she could not experience the paintings in the same way he could. He also seemed to like saying why he thought a certain interpretation was wrong. He was convincing and had changed her mind on a several paintings.

“Sister, where have you been?” Midoriko inquired when she noticed Kikyo coming down the street. She stood up, but Kikyo waved her off. 

“The demon museum again,” the middle sister answered as she eased into her waiting seat.

“You truly like that museum, hmm?” Midoriko asked. 

“You knew I would and that’s why you showed it to me,” Kikyo replied. There was no way she would not live in a museum of that size with so much art that she had only seen in pictures or had not experienced since high school. She still had not touched every inch of the place and she had been there about six times already.

“This is true. I wish you would have called to let us know you were going to be late,” the eldest woman commented, slightly pursing her lips.

“We could’ve ordered,” Kaede pointed out. This was very true and from her frown, Kikyo knew Kaede would have liked to order already.

“I’m sorry. I lost track of the time,” Kikyo explained. For once, they had not been at the forefront of her mind.

“That’s unlike you,” Midoriko stated and Kikyo nodded in agreement.

“What happened?” Kaede asked, taking a gulp from her soda. She wore a baseball hat, covering one of her chocolate eyes and a bead of sweat ran down from the hat to her chin. They would see how long she would keep the hat on before conceding to the heat. 

“Nothing much happened. I just met an interesting fellow and we got to talking. Eventually, I was engrossed in the conversation over some of the paintings and other works,” Kikyo explained.

Kaede snickered and leaned her elbow on the table. “You left us waiting because of a guy?” She wiped her brow. 

“Hardly,” Kikyo answered. It was nothing like Kaede was suggesting with the twinkle in her eyes.

“A demon was actually talking with you about demon art in that museum?” Midoriko asked a bit incredulously.

“Well, I think I caught him by surprise,” the middle sister replied. 

“I’m sure you did. No demon expects to see a human in a museum full of demonic art. He probably thought you were lost,” the eldest remarked.

“Or bonkers,” the youngest added. She took her hat off and wiped her forehead with her palm, but put the cap back on. 

Kikyo bit back a smile. “He may have, but in the end, we enjoyed each other’s company and had a fine talk. He left me with a better understanding of a few pieces that had always puzzled me.” She could not hold back a small smile now. She looked forward to doing it again.

“Well, at least you enjoyed yourself, even if it was with a demon,” Midoriko commented.

Midoriko wondered what it was between her sister and people with demon blood. She did not mind Kikyo admitted to enjoying the company of a demon male who was not her husband. Kikyo deserved sometime to be happy and she certainly would not get that with her standoffish husband, who seemed to be a sadist and liked to make Kikyo miserable whenever the chance reared its head. As long as cavorting with this demon did not turn out to be a stroke of bad luck like meeting Naraku had. Besides, she doubted Kikyo would meet the same demon again. It was not like Kikyo would seek him out. 

Their conversation was paused as the waiter came over to take their lunch orders. Kikyo also got a drink. She hoped that was the end of what she did with her time, as she knew her sisters could worry about her when around male demons if she showed enough interest. Of course, she was not so lucky.

“So, what was the demon like?” Kaede asked, refocused on Kikyo now that the waiter was gone. 

“He was intelligent, very into paintings as far as I could tell—” Kikyo started, but her little sister cut her off. 

“What did he look like?” the youngest clarified with a smile, as if humoring Kikyo, even though she was the one who started this.

“Oh.” Kikyo blinked and had to take a moment to restart her thought pattern. “Well, he was tall and rather handsome with very light silver hair. He was pale… ethereally so. He was actually very soft spoken, but he sounded so very deliberant when he spoke. I’m meeting him again tomorrow.”

The eldest’s eyebrow ticked up as a hint of a frown ghosted across her face. “Tomorrow? Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“Why would it not be? We had a good time today and he did want to meet up again. I don’t see why that should not be a good idea,” Kikyo answered. Why should she not enjoy someone’s company? It was not often she desired to be around a person enough to meet again.

“Well, you are married,” Kaede commented as if it was obvious.

“I walked through a museum with him. I didn’t jump into bed with him,” the middle sister argued. Did they think she could not control herself and would simply throw herself at the first demon male who did not want to hurt her emotionally?

Midoriko was a bit stunned by Kikyo’s words. The latter sentence was something she would have expected from Kaede, not Kikyo. She would never use such crude phrases, so she did not expect the middle sister to do such a thing. Midoriko did not get chance to speak on that, though.

“Shouldn’t you not chance it?” the youngest commented.

“I am not going to do anything with him, aside from walk through the museum and have lunch tomorrow. That is all. I understand I am married and I do not make it a habit to go home with strange men as soon as I meet them,” Kikyo stated.

She was married. She was married to one of the worse men she had ever met. But, she would not be disloyal because she made a stupid decision. She made vows to Naraku and she would honor those vows, even if he seemed to push them to the limit.

Besides, she had only just met Sesshomaru. She was not interested in him in any sort of romantic way. She had enjoyed a museum with him and that did not amount to much to her. After all, she enjoyed museums when she was by herself.

“Yeah, but you don’t usually hang out with people unless they’re already there,” Kaede said. “Like, you don’t make dates with people.”

“Again, I am aware I am married. He was there today and we both found we liked our opinions on art and simply agreed to share them again tomorrow,” Kikyo replied.

“Kikyo, be careful with this. Naraku might sense this other demon on you,” Midoriko pointed out, as if her younger sister did not know that.

Kikyo only glanced at her sister. She knew her hanyou husband might sense or smell another demon on her, but for that to happen, she would need to be near him. She was not looking to be near him and ever since he began his new job, he did not seem to want to be near her either, busy trying to claw his way to the top of his career.

Naraku typically came home late now. He went to bars and places looking to unwind after a day of dealing with his partner at work. She was usually asleep by the time he came into the apartment. A few times, he came in drunk and woke her up to be an annoyance and harass her about whatever he deemed important. But, he generally left her alone and passed out on the living room floor, which she was thankful for. She knew how bad he could be if given any sort of excuse and from the way he ranted about the “dog bastard” he worked with, whatever was going on at his job seemed like it should have been enough of a reason for him to bother her.

The hanyou tried to focus his sadistic energy on his coworker since he had so quickly come to despise the full demon. He had practically forgotten he had a wife he had been planning to break, for the moment at least. She knew she was always somewhere lurking in his mind because of his twisted view on things.

“So, you say you’re having lunch with this new demon. Don’t you think that is a bit much?” Midoriko inquired, taking a sip of her drink as the waiter returned with an iced tea for the middle sister.

“To have lunch? I have lunch with you two everyday,” Kikyo replied, her index finger going right to top of the glass and she began circling it.

“We’re not male demons,” Midoriko stated.

“Sister, I am not going to do anything with him. This is not a date and I’m not having an affair this gentleman. You’re reading too much into.” Kikyo could not believe she actually had to say this. “Do you have such little faith in me?”

Midoriko waved Kikyo off instead of dignifying that with a response. She doubted her younger sister would do anything outrageous, but she still did not think it was a good idea for her sister to hang around a demon male when she was married to a hanyou, a rather evil hanyou. She thought it was asking for trouble.

“Be careful, sister,” the eldest practically pled.

“It is only lunch,” Kikyo replied in a dismissive tone. She did not think anything would happen. She understood she was married and she was not really interested in Sesshomaru anyway. Yes, he was handsome, he knew a lot about art, and he seemed to very intelligent, but that did not make him attractive to her.

“Still be careful,” Midoriko repeated.

Kikyo only nodded, hoping it would ease her elder sister’s mind. She had no plans to do anything with Sesshomaru aside from have lunch with him and she doubted he wanted anything from her. He did not seem to think too highly of humans, stating a number of times while they toured the museum that “humans could never do something so grand” or something else against humans. She did not see why he had even spent time with her since he seemed to think humans were little more than total bipedal monkeys and nothing more. She figured she might be able to get a better handle on him when she spent more time with him tomorrow.

“If that foolhardy hanyou accuses you of anything or tries anything, rest assured he will be ashes,” Midoriko said.

Kikyo shook her head. She would not give her big sister the excuse. If Naraku had a problem she would handle it. Thankfully, this topic was dropped as their food finally arrived. Kaede finally took the hat off of her head.

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru strolled into the demon art museum. He thought Kikyo would be waiting outside for him, but he did not see her there. He remembered her scent from yesterday and he caught a whiff of it at the front of the museum, which let him know she was there. He figured he knew where she was, but he still followed her sent, which led him to right where he knew she would be.

“You really like this painting,” Sesshomaru commented as he came up to Kikyo.

“Even if it is supposed to be ambiguous as you say in meaning, I can still appreciate the colors, patterns, and brushstrokes as I do with all of his works,” she replied.

“I suppose,” he said. “How long have you been here?” He could tell from her smell at the front of the building and how faded it was she had been there a while, but he wanted to know how long she had roamed the museum.

“I actually don’t know,” she answered with a small amused smile. She lost track of time in the museum often it seemed. Such things never happened in other museums, but there was so much in this one.

“You are an odd little human,” he commented.

“I hope you don’t think I’ll take that as a compliment,” she riposted.

Sesshomaru seemed to think on it for a moment. “No, I don’t suppose you would.”

“At least you know. So, are we to have lunch or might I continue to get lost in this work?” she asked.

“Lunch for me would be best. I could use some kind of nourishment,” he commented. He needed something to give him strength to go deal with that blasted fool of a hanyou. Naraku was going to make him pull all of his hair out before using his poisonous claws to decapitate the filthy half-breed.

Sesshomaru turned around to leave the museum and Kikyo followed him. He hailed a taxi, which she thought was a bit odd. There were dozens of restaurants and cafes in the area they were in, so why did they need to take a cab anywhere? She glanced at her companion and realized if she did not ask, he would not explain himself.

“Where are we going?” she inquired.

“A good place,” he simply answered. He wanted to go to his favorite restaurant and eat his favorite meal to help him forget that an irksome bastard like Naraku even existed. He thought an elegant atmosphere and intelligent company would wipe Naraku from his mind, if only for a little while. If only he thought about that when he left work, he would have remembered to bring his car.

Kikyo only nodded. Some women might be worried being in an enclosed place with a male demon she just met and had no idea where they going, but Kikyo hardly thought about it. Danger was not really a word she recognized because she was always confident she could take care of herself. Besides, she did not sense any threat from him.

They silently took the short ride to the restaurant Sesshomaru wanted to go to. Kikyo did not look surprised by the décor of the restaurant. She used to often go to nice places with her elder sister whenever Midoriko won a case; the eldest sister was a rather successful attorney.

The golden-eyed demon glanced down at his companion to see her reaction to the restaurant. There was no reaction, which he did not admit, impressed him. He rarely met a female who could keep her calm when standing outside of such a lush establishment. He noticed almost every subtle change in a woman when she laid eyes on something that showed he had wealth at his disposal. There was no change her demeanor.

They entered and Sesshomaru was given a table immediately, even though he did not have a reservation. Kikyo still was quite unimpressed, as if this was something that she was used to. _She’s an odd creature_. He could not think of a better way to describe her. He was coming to understand he liked the fact that she was so strange.

“I’m not sure if they serve human food,” Sesshomaru commented, even though he was lying. His father brought his stepmother there all of the time and he knew they served human food, especially when Rin went to the restaurant. She had to let everyone know they served the best grilled fish she had ever tasted.

He had lied because he wanted to see her reaction to the lie. He figured any other woman would either pout or pretend that it did not bother her. He was not sure what Kikyo might do since she was different from any other woman that he could think of, except maybe Rin, but Rin was a human who did not know she was human.

“Why would you bring me to some place that might not serve what I need?” Kikyo asked, almost as if musing aloud, while looking at the menu. She could see they catered to both humans and demons.

“Perhaps I thought you would eat demon food since you enjoy demon art,” he proposed.

“You would be reading too much into me then, sir,” she commented with a small smile. She was obviously amused and the look on her face nearly made him smile.

“I should have known a human would lack depth,” he countered. Usually, he would mean those words, but something about her made them more a tease than anything else. Maybe it had something to do with the fact she nearly made him smile, which was something only his little sister should have been able to do.

She seemed to know he was teasing, even though his voice remained the same. “Well, I should have known that a demon would be selfish,” she replied.

“I suppose you should have,” he concurred. Had she teased back and he accepted that? Well, now, he was being odd.

Kikyo laughed just a bit, the sound low, but pealed like a small bell. A waiter came over to take their orders and they both noted the other did not order how they assumed they would. They both ordered what they knew to be the other’s species form of junk food. They looked at each other as the waiter went off to gather their meals.

“You don’t look like the type to have such a poor diet,” Sesshomaru said.

“I was going to say the same of you,” Kikyo replied.

“I suppose there’s much for us to learn about each other.”

“It does seem that way. But, we have time, don’t we?” she asked.

“Well, we have an hour and then I must get back to work,” he admitted with a subtle pained look in his eyes.

She noticed. “You’re stressed over work.”

“No, only a person at work,” he replied.

“Well, if you wish, you can tell me about it. Or if you would like, you could pretend that person doesn’t exist at all. I’m sure I can offer up some kind of conversation if you would rather forget,” she offered.

“I’m sure you could.” Sesshomaru decided against discussing Naraku. He would rather not burden her with the annoyance of a hanyou. He also would rather forget Naraku while he was with Kikyo. He wanted to know more about the strange human in his company than anything else. She intrigued him. “When did you get into art?”

She smiled and they were off. The pair sat with each other, making casual conversation. Every now and then, they would hit a lull in the discussion and they would just be silent. He was amazed when she would just allow the silence to reign. Most women would try to fill the quiet with something irrelevant or irksome, even his darling little sister had a bad habit with that one. But, then again, Rin was a talker. Kikyo was not and he liked that about her. It was shock for him to admit such a thing, even to himself. It was so hard to find a person who understood silence did not have to be discomforting or filled with any idea that came to mind. He had to suffer through that nonsense with Inuyasha.

“So, what are you doing tomorrow?” Sesshomaru asked Kikyo as they finished with their meal and prepared to leave the establishment.

“The same thing I did today,” Kikyo replied.

“No appointment with your sisters?”

“Only if you’re not going to ask me to lunch again,” she answered with a small smile.

“I see. Well, would you care to join me for lunch here again tomorrow?” he inquired. 

“Should I meet you here?” she countered.

“No, I wouldn’t want to cut into your time with that precious painting,” he remarked.

“The painting is quite fascinating and I always notice something new when I see it,” she defended herself. 

“I know and understand. I’ll come back to the museum to get you,” he said. It would be the gentleman thing to do, after all, and he was… okay, he would not call himself a gentleman, but he did have manners.

“All right, see you tomorrow then. I hope when you return to work, things will be better for you,” she said. 

Sesshomaru nodded, even though he doubted things would be better for him. If she knew Naraku, he thought, then she could just tell him where to find the right amount of bug spray to kill the pest. They bid each other farewell and went their separate ways for the day. It would be nice to meet up again tomorrow, though. 

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: if it looks like a date and quacks like a date… doesn’t that make it a date? Maybe not since Sesshomaru finds out Kikyo is married and he doesn’t take the news well.


	4. Unidentified Dates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

4: Unidentified Dates

Sesshomaru stared at his desk while Naraku went on about his next bad idea. Sesshomaru was almost certain he could hear his brain cells dying as the half-breed droned on and on. How was any of this supposed to impress their client? How was he supposed to come up with any sort of art for this bizarre notion Naraku was trying to pass as an actual thought? 

The dog demon silently admitted neither of them was coming off as the tops in their field with the work that they were doing for the account. Naraku was coming up with junk upon junk while Sesshomaru was not doing much better. The golden-eyed male had not drawn a decent logo or mascot since meeting up with the crimson-eyed hanyou. He blamed Naraku, though. He did not work well with others and he was aware of that.

“You’re acting as if you don’t want this account, dog,” Naraku commented. He could tell the full demon was not paying attention to him, not that Sesshomaru ever paid him much mind.

“From your work, I’m assuming you don’t want it either, half-breed,” Sesshomaru countered. It took all of his self-control to not tear the hanyou apart for referring to him as “dog.” The smell of his blood would probably never come out of the floor and it would eventually drive Sesshomaru mad, which seemed to be Naraku’s whole purpose for existing.

Neither Sesshomaru nor Naraku called each other by name. They tended to call each other any profane word that came to mind; the most commonly used was “bastard.” They used such words almost as if they were nicknames. The company had a pool on which one of them would snap first and kill the other, included in that was the means of what one would use to kill the other.

“Well, what have you done that was worthwhile lately, dog?” Naraku asked his partner. 

Sesshomaru only glanced at the half-demon. He could not wait for lunchtime. He would be able to get away from such an irksome bastard and in the company of someone he was quickly deciding was an angel, Kikyo. Yes, he had another lunch date with the strange human. 

The dog demon began to consider Kikyo an angel for several reasons and the top one was that she made him forget about that a self-important, disrespectful, hanyou bastard like Naraku even existed. She was an extraordinary break in the day. Hell, sometimes in the week. It was a pleasure to sit with her and have intelligent conversation after dealing with hordes of fools. Something about her presence soothed him and the sound her low, somber voice washed away any grime that was left on him by Naraku or any other annoyance in his life. She had to be an angel to make him feel that way and he had only known her for a few weeks.

Another reason Sesshomaru thought of Kikyo as an angel was because of how odd she was as a human. There was something off about Kikyo as a human. She was interested in weird things, aside from demon art. She was into archery, as was her sisters, and he was willing to bet her sisters were just as odd as she was, even though he had not met them. She was into almost anything that another person might dub archaic in his opinion. She did calligraphy and knew ancient histories long forgotten by most. He thought it was strange, but he liked it about her. They had already had several history discussions and he found he liked how she could see things from many different perspectives, even though she had her own opinion.

“Are you paying attention?” Naraku demanded, interrupting Sesshomaru’s thoughts on Kikyo.

“Oh, you’re still talking. That would explain the blood pouring from my ears,” the dog demon remarked blandly. He needed to get out of there if only to save his brain.

“You’re not taking this serious,” Naraku growled. He was so sick of the demon prince he just wanted to use his youki to tear him apart in a matter of seconds and paint the damned office with his royal blood.

The hair on the nape of Sesshomaru’s neck stood up for a moment at the sound of the half-breed’s growl. Was this simple bastard challenging him? He cracked his knuckles and waited for a reaction. Naraku flinched at the noise, but did not do anything beyond that.

“And you are? Listen, half-demon, your work is less than presentable on all fronts, so until you get your act together, do not question anything about me,” Sesshomaru stated with a bit of a snarl. He was ready to slit Naraku in two vertically because the half-breed was going above and beyond when it came to be being troublesome now.

“You miserable dog,” Naraku snarled.

Sesshomaru’s mouth twitched downward. “Watch your mouth, filthy half-breed.” There was only so much a nobleman could take and Sesshomaru was close to his wits end.

The two males eyed each other, energy popping between them, daring each other. It seemed like they had hit their limit. It was amazing considering they had already put up with each other for almost a month. But, now, they were ready to get to it and Sesshomaru was almost glad for it. He needed an excuse to be rid of this wretch. But, suddenly the phone rang and was just enough of a distraction to release the tension of the room.

The dog demon was closest to the device, so he answered. It might be an important business call, after all. He was not about to allow Naraku to mess with his money.

The ebony-haired male watched as Sesshomaru exchanged words with whoever it was on the phone. The full demon glanced at his partner on occasion before hanging up the phone. He then walked to the door and it seemed he was just going to leave without letting Naraku know what that phone call was about or as if he was not going to finish what they had not even started.

“What was that about?” Naraku demanded, tearing out of the chair. 

“Just the clients. They wanted to know what we had,” Sesshomaru informed his bothersome partner.

“What did you tell them?” the half-breed inquired, as if he were not sitting right there to hear Sesshomaru’s end of the conversation.

“What could I offer other than the fact that we had nothing? They would like us to come up with something soon or the account will be given to others,” the platinum-haired demon stated as if that information was nothing important. 

“Then where are you going?” Naraku asked.

“Nowhere that concerns you,” Sesshomaru stated and then he left. He could not take it anymore.

Sesshomaru needed to get out of the office. He was sick of dealing with the crimson-eyed hanyou and the fact that they had not gotten out of the starting gates on this account. He did not want to think about the clients now breathing down their necks. He did not feel like being stressed anymore. He wanted to be with his angel and unwind. Maybe she could offer him some ideas as to what he should do. He did not make it a habit of talking about work with her, but at the moment, he could use some inspiration on the account before the clients decided to walk. 

Sesshomaru pulled out his cell phone and called Kikyo to see where she was. He was leaving to meet her earlier than the time that they agreed on, but she claimed she did not have much to do with herself since she was still unemployed. He had to remember to ask her about her employment situation, he told himself, as he waited for her to answer her phone.

“Hello, Sesshomaru,” Kikyo greeted him over the phone.

“Hello, Kikyo. Where are you?” he asked. He suspected she was at the museum, like she typically was. He thought she should just work there, but he knew she was much trained to be a doctor and he thought that was much more respectable than working in a museum. Besides, he doubted a demon museum would hire a human, regardless of how knowledgeable she was about much of the work. 

“I’m walking through a park right now,” she informed him.

“Where is this park?” he inquired. Why was she in a park? 

Kikyo told him what he wanted to know and he disconnected the call after ordering her not to leave. It was not a harsh order, but it was still an order. It was a habit of his. He was used to being in command and in control. He strolled off to where she said she was, which was not very far. He was within the park in less than five minutes and he caught her heavenly scent in under five seconds. He easily made it to her. She was sitting across from a fountain.

“Kikyo,” Sesshomaru said as he moved over to her. He sort of breathed her name, like it was a relief to simply exhale the word. 

“Sesshomaru,” she replied as she turned to him. His name escaped her as if it was a smile.

“What are you doing in this park?” he asked as he looked around at all of the children running around, people walking their dogs, and other park activities. 

“My little sister had me here when she met with her friends and then she left me all alone,” the chocolate-eyed woman explained with an amused look on her face. “She could have at least warned me. I would have brought my sketchbook.”

“Your little sister sounds something like my little sister,” he commented. 

“Perhaps all little sisters are alike. Should you not be at work?” she inquired with an arched eyebrow.

With a short sigh, he waved the question off. “I had to get out of there.”

“Why?” 

“No reason that is important,” he replied. He really hated thinking about his job when he was with her. He wanted to enjoy her company. “When are you going to get a job?” he asked to change the subject. There was no judgment in his tone and she did not take offense.

“I am not sure,” she admitted with a slight shrug.

Kikyo was reluctant to go out and get work because Naraku had threatened her a few times that he promised to get her fired if she did continue on with her career. He wanted her home for some reason she knew was related to him climbing the social ladder. Most of the time, she was certain it had something to do with him wanting to get on her nerves and nothing beyond that. She knew better than to try and call his bluff about her job as he had twice almost gotten her fired from the clinic she used to work at in their old city.

She knew Naraku wanted her to be a docile housewife and she might not have had much of a problem with that if the hanyou was not so completely twisted in his thinking. He wanted her like that because he would like to see her plain miserable. He really just wanted a puppy to kick that would crawl back for another hit. She would not give him the satisfaction. She would never be anyone’s whipping girl. But, she was not looking to find employment either. She had to plan out how she would be able to work without worrying over Naraku ruining her reputation.

“You should get a job. Surely you are a competent physician,” Sesshomaru said. She was too intelligent to be anything less.

“I suppose,” Kikyo agreed. She knew he was trying to compliment her, but she was learning he was not well practiced at complimenting people.

“The world could use as many good doctors as it can get,” he pointed out.

“I suppose.” The petite female had little desire to share why she was not looking for work. She never told Sesshomaru about the misshapen relationship that was her marriage. She did not want to think about her husband while she was with Sesshomaru. She liked to lose herself in his company and often did. It was a weight lifted from her shoulders to be with him and forget about Naraku for a few hours.

There was something about Sesshomaru’s calm presence that eased her nerves. Sure, she always appeared tranquil, but of course that was not the case, not with the husband she had. Sometimes, she had all sorts of emotions raging inside of her, emotions she wished she could ignore, emotion she wished would go away, but she knew they never would while she was with Naraku. When she was with Sesshomaru, the emotions became still and she truly felt at peace. She missed the feeling and welcomed it with Sesshomaru.

The dog demon was a refreshing change from her husband. He was not methodical like Naraku. Sure, he believed he was the greatest thing that had ever been created and Naraku was the same, but Sesshomaru went about it differently. He was not out to prove he was great. To him, it was obvious and did not need to be stated in manner. Naraku fought and scratched and kicked to try to let the world know how great he was. Sesshomaru did not need anyone to validate his existence like the hanyou did.

“Well, since we are in a park, why don’t we take a walk?” Sesshomaru suggested since it seemed like Kikyo was not up for talking about finding a job. He wondered why that was since she had spoken about enjoying her work, when she had it anyway.

“Sounds wonderful,” she answered.

Sesshomaru climbed to his feet and then put his hand out for Kikyo. She did not even think as she took his hand and was surprised to find his hand was smooth. She was aware he had sword training, so it was a bit peculiar for him not to have callouses. He took care of his skin.

“Your hand,” she said.

“Proper claw maintenance is a must,” he replied.

She accepted that. They walked hand and hand through the park. They looked like a very odd couple in the park because, first of all, they were a human and a demon together. Interspecies couples were rare, despite how civilized everyone liked to pretend they were. The pair also appeared rather sophisticated. He was in a suit and she was in business casual clothing. It was a bit too much for a simple walk in the park if they were on a date. Well, people could easily think they were on a date. Sesshomaru and Kikyo did not think about it much.

Sesshomaru noted the slender hand in his own was soft and warm, delicate, but strong. He enjoyed holding onto Kikyo. He glanced down at her hand and noticed her wedding band. It was not the first time he noticed the ring. He wondered if she was truly married or it was a ploy to keep men away from her, not that it worked if it was a ploy.

The golden-eyed male had seen men trying to pick up Kikyo when he was on his way to meet her. He usually got very angry when he witnessed such scenes. Well, how dare anyone talk to his angel? The nerve of such males. He always stalked over to them as quietly as possible and then scowled down at them since Kikyo not being interested did not seem to get through to them. They definitely understood a furious dog demon was not something they wanted in their lives, so they would quickly vacate the area and leave his angel alone.

If Kikyo was married, why did she never speak of the man, Sesshomaru wondered. He supposed he should just ask, but he was not very interested in hearing the answer. He knew he would not like it if she was married. He would not admit why he did not want her to be married, but he knew he would prefer it if she was not.

“So, do you know where your little sister ran off to?” Sesshomaru asked to get his mind off of if the wedding band was legitimate or not.

“I have no idea. She merely asked for money and then ran off,” Kikyo replied with a small smile.

“She is really starting to sound very much like my little sister,” he commented with a small smile of his own.

Kikyo only smiled more. She always smiled more whenever Sesshomaru smiled because it was so rare. In the few weeks she had known him, she was certain she could count on one hand how many times she had seen a smile grace his features. She liked seeing him smile. She especially liked when she caused him to smile. It warmed her in a way no man ever had. She considered it something unique to their friendship and nothing deeper than that, but part of her knew it was something deeper.

“So, where shall we dine today?” Sesshomaru asked, glancing down at her, needing to take her in at that very moment.

“Hmm…” Kikyo thought on the question. “Follow me,” she replied while gently pulling him away.

Sesshomaru questioned what she was doing, but the ebony-haired woman did not explain herself. She merely continued to lightly tug him by the hand and he allowed that. He was curious as to where they were going, but he now knew she was not going to explain herself. He was self-aware enough to know he behaved in a similar manner.

Kikyo ignored the fact that she felt a bit giddy around Sesshomaru and that was why she was pulling him as if she was some eager school girl. When was the last time she felt like this? Never, she was certain. She led him out of the park and down the street. She then stopped in front of a pizza shop. She went to the window that was on the outside instead of going into the place.

“Two slices please,” Kikyo requested from the pizza-maker, who nodded and put two waiting slices into the oven.

“Two slices of what?” Sesshomaru asked. Did she really expect him to eat some human junk food?

“Wait a moment,” Kikyo told him.

Sesshomaru was utterly baffled. He had never been to a pizza parlor. He did not eat human food, even though he had a completely human little sister and stepmother. He never really paid attention to what they ate, either. It did not interest him.

“What is this?” the dog demon inquired as the pizza-maker brought them their two slices.

“The one universal life-saver,” the petite female answered as she went into her shoulder bag, apparently about to pay for their meal.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Sesshomaru inquired when he noticed her reaching for her wallet.

“It’s only three dollars, Sesshomaru,” she argued because she knew he was about to make a big thing about her paying. He was rather old-fashion in the sense that he was not willing to let her pay for anything when she was in his company. She was a little flattered by that it, but sometimes it was irksome at times like this when she wanted to treat him.

“Then I can easily pay,” he countered.

“As can I,” she stated. She did not like to feel indebted to anyone, but she had yet to feel like that when out with Sesshomaru. Still, she would like to pick up the tab on occasion, especially when it was her idea.

“But, you won’t,” he soundly commanded.

“This was my idea,” she said. It might work.

“That is irrelevant.”

Kikyo pouted just a little bit. He was the only person she would dare do such a thing in front of. Not even her sisters had ever seen her do anything close to pouting. He paid her expression little mind, except for noting it was cute, and he paid for their pizza. She sighed, shoulders slouchy somewhat. She would not mind paying for something just once, if only to show her gratitude to Sesshomaru for being such a comforting presence.

“Would it kill you to let me pay once?” she asked.

“Perhaps.” He looked down at his pizza. The smell was familiar. Rin and Inuyasha ate something like this often if he was not mistake. He was not sure how he felt about eating something Inuyasha ate. “Now, what do we do with this mess?”

“We eat it, Sesshomaru,” Kikyo replied in a dry tone as she picked her slice and bit the tip of the slice.

“Right here? While standing up?” he asked in disbelief. How unsophisticated.

She regarded him with a slight tilt to her head. “You’ve never eaten pizza with your little sister, I take it?”

“You have?”

“She is the one who continues to have me and my older sister walking around while we eat slices. According to her, that’s how you’re supposed to do it. Come on, let’s go back to the park and stroll around the lake,” she proposed.

“All right,” he concurred with his face slightly scrunched up.

Sesshomaru picked up his slice, which was sitting limply on a white paper plate. He sniffed the food as they walked off to go back to the park. He turned his nose up at it and Kikyo noticed.

“Just try it, Sesshomaru,” she told him. He was quite set in his ways, which sometimes she admired, and sometimes she found somewhat adorable. He was lost when out of his element, even though he tried not to show it.

“You make it sound so simple,” he replied and a sneer settled on his face.

“It is. Look,” she said and then she took another bite of her pizza. She had to admit the little corner shop had some of the best pizza she had tasted.

She told him once more to try it and he made a noise of protest. He was very against the idea of eating something that looked like a cheesy refuse. He put the slice to his mouth and took a very small bite into the so-called food. He seemed surprised the pizza did not kill him, Kikyo noted, as he swallowed the tiny piece.

“You are being much too dramatic,” the petite woman commented, fighting off a smile. She did not want him to think she was taunting him or he might not eat the rest of his slice.

Sesshomaru only frowned. He bit into the pizza again, not finding the slice entirely terrible. Kikyo noted the dog demon ate the pizza despite the fact that he was attempting to make it seem as if the food was the grossest thing he could possibly ingest. She did not say anything and continued to eat her slice. They silently walked around the lake in the park, enjoying each other and the pizza. No conversation was necessary.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo sat at home on the sofa. There was jazz music playing in the background while she focused on her sketchbook. She could only do sketches in the apartment because there was no space for her to set up to do her sculpting. She was willing to bet her “darling” husband had gotten the apartment because of that. It was all right, though. She was fine with drawing for now. After she found a job, she would find some place she could sculpt.

It had been a while since she drew anything aside from family members. She used to draw them because she missed them, living so far away and trapped with Naraku. In fact, she had sketchbook full of only her family. Lately though, she sketched other things, things she either saw in the street and happened to recall or thoughts of things she would sculpt whenever she ever got the chance to do so again. It was nice to have a variety of ideas going through her mind and flowing onto her paper.

She had been doing such work since about the time she met Sesshomaru. The soothing affect he had on her seemed to beckon her to work on some art, even though her muse had not really sunk its teeth in yet. She was content, as she generally was after having an afternoon with the handsome dog demon, and then she heard keys in the door. Apparently, her feeling was not going to last long.

“Kikyo,” Naraku practically growled as he entered the apartment.

“What?” she replied as she closed her sketchbook and tucked it underneath her arm. How could he be upset with her when he had not even laid eyes on her yet?

“Kikyo,” he growled again.

“What?” she repeated and then she caught sight of him. “Dear lord, you’re drunk,” she realized. She did not want to deal with him intoxicated.

“It’s that dog bastard’s fault. He’s ruining my account,” Naraku snarled. “Bastard!” He punched his fist into his palm.

“How so?” she asked as if she cared. It was best to humor him, distract him, and then he would pass out without making her life difficult.

She had already heard her fair share of his “that dog bastard” rants. She did not even know who the “dog bastard” was because her irritable husband never used his real name. He was always said “that dog bastard.” Well, more barked the moniker rather than simply speaking it. She had come to understand her spouse and whoever he was partnered with at work were not getting along and the account suffered because of it. She was surprised Naraku had not been able to charm this partner, but he clearly did not know how to handle someone not just falling into line with him.

“Are you questioning me?” he groused, his upper lip curled up like a feral dog. “You’re just like that dog bastard, always mocking me and questioning me, like you know better than me. I know what I’m doing. I know more than him. I’m better than him. This is my account and I won’t let him ruin it!” He shook his fist and he nearly stumbled over, unable to walk and make a fist at the same time.

“All right, you’re drunk,” she stated, planning to leave him to his ramblings if he was going to take her because work was not going as he wanted it. She stood from the couch.

“Where are you going?” he demanded and he grabbed her by her pale wrists. She almost dropped her sketchbook and his eyes narrowed on the tome. “You and that bastard with your worthless art. I could stop you from wasting your time.” He squeezed her wrist and caused her to wince. “Does it hurt, dearest?” he inquired and from the way his crimson eyes lit up, he delighted in her agony.

She locked eyes with him, glaring down into the abyss he pretended was a soul, needing him to understand the severity of the situation. “Release me now or this will end with you being an unrecognizable pile of ashes on our floor,” she calmly stated.

Naraku seemed to think on the promise for a moment. He stared into her chocolate eyes and then he slowly released her. Kikyo retreated into their bedroom and locked the door. If he entered that room, she was not going to allow him to leave unless someone had a broom or if she opened a window. He passed out on the sofa minutes after she left him alone.

-*-(Next day)-*-

Sesshomaru met up with Kikyo for lunch as usual. He was not going to allow her to lead him off for more human food, he decided, even though he silently admitted it was not as dreadful as he thought it would be. He would not want to eat such a thing everyday, though. He doubted it was healthy, but he supposed occasionally he could indulge in more pizza with her.

The dog demon walked to the museum and he found Kikyo by the painting that always seemed to haunt her. She was on the ivory bench that was located in front of the painting. Before he got to her, his keen golden eyes spotted her fumbling with her long sleeves. He craned a curious eyebrow as he marched toward her and sat down next to her.

“You’re a bit early,” the slim woman commented.

“I know,” he conceded and he looked down at her wrists. Her sleeves were almost completely covering her hands, which was typical of her shirts. He had never seen her fiddle with the sleeves before, so now he was curious as to why she did it. 

“Something wrong?” she asked when he noticed her eyeing her hands. She fought with herself to not bother the sleeves again, but she did not want him to see her skin.

“No, nothing,” he answered, still staring down at her hands.

“Then why are you looking at my hands?” she inquired.

“May I?” he asked, but he did not wait for an answer, which was typical of him. He reached for her arms and she tried to pull away, but she was not fast enough. 

“Sesshomaru!” Kikyo protested, trying to pull her limbs back.

“What happened to you here?” he inquired in forceful tone as he caught sight of bruising around her slender, pale wrists.

“It’s nothing,” she stated. It was nothing as far as she was concerned. Her skin was very fair and the smallest things showed up on her body. 

“This is something. Did someone hurt you? Who did this?” he demanded, already planning a grizzly murder for whoever dared to harm her. No one hurt Kikyo while he was around.

“Sesshomaru, release me,” she demanded in return.

The demon prince frowned as he let her go. He was not going to let the bruises go, though. _How dare someone damage my angel_ , he mentally snarled. No one touched what was his, so it was out of the question for someone to hurt what was his. He would find out who touched her and that person would pay piece by tiny piece.

“Who in the hell did that to you?” he inquired. “And I won’t ask another time,” he added in.

“My husband,” she answered through gritted teeth. He wanted to know so damn bad, then there was his precious answer.

Sesshomaru frowned deeper, feeling something explode inside his belly. So, the wedding band was the truth. She was married. He could not believe it, but he was more outraged now than when he saw the bruises and he thought that was as furious as he could get. He had been wrong on so many levels.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: if Sesshomaru is so upset, then why the hell are he and Kikyo going out for dinner and a show?


	5. Fall From Grace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

5: Fall From Grace

Sesshomaru had probably never scowled so deeply in all of his life, which said a lot considering he spent more time than he liked around Inuyasha. He doubted he had ever heard such horrible news in all of his days either. The woman he had dubbed an angel and who soothed his very soul, which most people would not even know he had, was married. She was married and possibly abused considering the bruises he discovered on her wrists. 

“Your husband did that?” the dog demon asked in a controlled tone. He was furious with her for being married, especially to a man who probably battered her. He wanted to shake her to wake her up, to get her to leave whoever mistreated her. He also wanted to tear into the man who did this to her.

“Yes. He momentarily grabbed me too hard,” Kikyo answered in a controlled tone of her own. She was upset the golden-eyed male had not let it go. She did not want him to know about her husband. She had enjoyed pretending Naraku did not exist while she was with Sesshomaru, but now he knew and things were probably going to change between them.

“All of that from a mere grab?” he inquired, eyes narrowed on the bruise. He could hardly believe a grab could do such damage to her skin.

“Yes, I bruise easily. See,” she replied and she showed him her arms, which were now bruising because he had grabbed her.

Sesshomaru actually frowned even deeper than before and fought the urge to jump back. “Did he hurt you?” he inquired in his usual tone, trying to show that the new bruises did not bother him, even though they did. After all, he had marred her lovely form. _What am I, an animal? How dare I do such a thing to her?_

“He only grabbed me,” she repeated in a tense tone.

“Why would he do such a thing? He is your husband,” Sesshomaru pointed out. Even though he saw she could have been telling the truth, perhaps he had only grabbed her and she bruised easily, this did nothing to calm the rage searing his insides. He wanted to punish her husband.

“That he is,” she sighed, shoulders slumping slightly. She did not like being reminded of that fact and that could almost be heard in her voice.

Sesshomaru was not sure what he wanted to do with the new information. He had grown attracted to Kikyo in the time he knew her. How could he not? She was a breath of fresh air in a city of smoke. He thought she might have felt the same, but how could it be so if she were married? Nothing could come of it. It seemed like she toyed with him all of the time they were together. But, that did not kill the attraction at all.

Of course, his current fury fought with his attraction. He was not sure which was winning. The petite woman before him was his, yet she was someone else’s too. He wanted to tear something apart, mostly her husband still. But, he did not even know who that bastard was. He really did not know what to do.

“Kikyo…” Sesshomaru trailed off because he wanted to be certain the next words he spoke were really the ones he wanted to express. He was not sure if he wanted to let her know the depth of his anger or if he wanted to let her know he could handle the new information, even though that was more a lie than anything else at the moment.

“You don’t have to say anything,” Kikyo told him before he decided to let his temper get the better of him.

The chocolate-eyed female realized she had pretty much lied to Sesshomaru. She could see the betrayal in his eyes. She knew any male spending time with her was not looking to just be friends. She merely hoped that was the case because she truly enjoyed being around the platinum-haired male. He was so soothing and calming, but she supposed that was the end of that.

“It was a pleasure meeting you and spending time with you,” she said gracefully, giving him a slight bow, and she turned to leave.

Sesshomaru watched the woman he believed to be an angel walk out of the museum and pretty much out of his life. He told himself he did not care she left and she was lucky she got out of the place before he decided to cut her down. Why should he want to be around a liar? A woman who tried to string him along? And to think, he almost fell for it. He almost fell for her.

“I shouldn’t have expected anything less from a human,” he growled under his breath. They were the lowest of the low and there were no exceptions; obviously, he did not count Rin in with humans. He could not believe he had nearly allowed that woman to get the better of him. He shook his head. “It has to be this account. I’ve become off balance since dealing with that blasted hanyou and now I’m allowing it to affect other aspects of my life. Never again.”

The dog demon went to lunch alone that day and tried not to think of what would happen if Kikyo was sitting across from him. She would probably be going on about some artist he had never heard of, but would look into later on and discover she was absolutely right about whatever it she was saying. He hated she had interested him into quite a few human artists. Or she might ask him questions about his travels around the world. It was a dream of hers to go around the world, checking out as many museums, historical sites, and other things as she could, experiencing other cultures and people. She wanted to do so much and he noted she always wanted to do them with her sisters. Family was important to her, which he could understand.

Sesshomaru shook the thoughts of Kikyo out of his head. _I do not care about that woman or her hopes and dreams. I do not care for her thoughts or anything that was on her mind. She is nothing more than a liar, human scum_. She was no one to him.

Despite the fact that he wanted to not care anymore, the fact that she was not with him at the moment when she could have been, quietly bothered him. He already missed the sound of her voice, the warm look in her cocoa eyes when she gazed at him, and the sight of her lovely, pale face. He missed the mood she seemed to bring with her, the calming, soothing, almost affectionate atmosphere. But, even her aura was a lie. Everything was a lie.

How could she be affectionate toward him when she had the nerve to be married? Her affections were for some other male. Some male he was certain did not deserve it because that warmth should be his. She should be his.

How could some other male be worthy of her? She was a special creature and her husband obviously did not serve her well if she was out making the acquaintance of other men. Her husband did not seem to helping her fulfill her dreams either. He would take her around the world several times and make sure she saw every museum in existence to make her happy. He would help her find the best hospital or open her own practice, so she could be the amazing doctor he knew she was. He would make sure there was always a light in her eyes. She would never think to need another male if she was his.

“Stop thinking about the filthy human,” he ordered himself, sucking his teeth in a rage. He turned his attention to his lunch, not even sure what he ordered. What would Kikyo have ordered if she were with him?

Sesshomaru sighed; his mind was betraying him. He was not interested in thinking of a woman who he lied to him, unless of course, he was plotting her demise. She had disrespected him and played with him, letting him grow attached to her. Yes, he should find someway to destroy her if he was going to do anything. He would consider traveling that road, but for the moment, he had to go back and deal with that damned half-breed. He never finished, or even started, his food.

The dog demon did not feel up to bothering with his half-breed partner. The crimson-eyed hanyou had already gotten on his nerves all that morning, but now he was more riled up because of what happened with Kikyo, not that he wanted to acknowledge that she had any affect on him at all. He marched straight to his office and went to his desk, silently hoping Naraku did not come in. His hope was not fulfilled.

Naraku burst into Sesshomaru’s office seconds after the nobleman had seated himself. It was like he had been watching for Sesshomaru and chased after him into the office. They both frowned while locking eyes. Sesshomaru felt a headache coming on before the irksome half-demon could even open his mouth. He did not have the patience for this today.

“What?” the dog demon growled his demand.

“Are you going to do any work on this?” Naraku waved around a folder. It probably held all of his bad ideas.

“Are you?” Sesshomaru riposted. He had other accounts and he was fine with those. It was only this thing with Naraku that would haunt him for all eternity, it seemed.

“Stop answering a question with a question. You have not put in any quality work on this whole project. The clients are breathing down my neck and I can’t carry your sorry ass,” Naraku declared.

Sesshomaru stared at Naraku with a slight tilt of his head. When had the little hanyou’s brain rot away? No one carried him. He pulled his weight. It was not his fault Naraku came up with junk. No, he had not come up with the best logos or any other sort of graphic, but they wanted something ridiculously cute and he was not that kind of artist. So, it was not like they hated his work like they actually hated all of the crap Naraku dared to show them. They kept telling him his art did not fit their vision where as they kept telling Naraku a straightforward “no.”

“Don’t you have anything to say for yourself? I can’t believe my clients thought you would be worth anything to this account,” Naraku huffed.

“I see and you’ve been the light of the sun on this particular project. Listen carefully, half-breed as I will not repeat myself, until you find yourself doing something worthwhile, do not question the effort I am putting forth,” Sesshomaru ordered the repulsive hanyou.

“There’s nothing wrong with what I’ve done,” Naraku argued.

“Then why have they rejected everything you’ve shown them?” Sesshomaru inquired.

“Because it was paired with your shitty art,” the half-breed stated, folding his arms across his chest.

Sesshomaru, who was already on edge thanks to his lunch hour, was now over the edge. He tore himself from his seat and methodically marched over to the damnable hanyou and glared down at him. He noticed how daring the fool returned his gaze.

“I would watch my tongue if I were you, filth,” Sesshomaru growled as he grabbed the half-breed by the throat with speed that Naraku did not expect.

A short gagged escaped Naraku before Sesshomaru made it impossible for him to even gag. He needed the hanyou to understand he could easily crush this bug and he would not lose sleep over it. After a quick display of that power, he eased his grip enough for Naraku to breath.

“You think this bothers me?” Naraku inquired, trying to tilt his chin. Then, he felt claws pressing into his flesh. A couple of tentacles sprouted from the hanyou’s back. He could not let Sesshomaru embarrass him further, so he was set to counterattack.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you either. Unless you’re suicidal,” the dog demon informed his captive. He would drop Naraku long before one of those disgusting tentacles made it to him.

“What do you know?” Naraku snarled. He would tear the bastard dog apart with his tentacles.

“I know I could melt your head off of your shoulders before your slithering appendages could touch me. Now, if you wish to call my bluff, feel free. I would not lament your loss in the slightest and I would only get a new office to not have to live with the permanent stench you would leave behind,” the platinum-haired male stated in a cool, calculating tone. He spoke no lie. 

Naraku hesitated and Sesshomaru no longer felt the desire to play with the fool. He flung the half-breed out of his office as if the crimson-eyed male was worthless. Well, as far as Sesshomaru was concerned, his partner was worthless. Naraku impacted the wall on the opposite side of Sesshomaru’s office and he cracked the plaster. Sesshomaru casually shut the door to his office to not even have to look at sorry excuse for a half-demon.

The nobleman returned to his desk and sighed. He massaged his temples, hoping to ease the tension built in his brain thanks to Kikyo and Naraku. The fact that his work was not going well from an artistic point did not even get to make it to his list of annoyances because Kikyo and Naraku took up the whole list, but the problem was predominately his former cocoa-eyed angel. How long would she haunt him?

He wanted her. She was one of the few things on the planet that did not bother him. Well, had not bothered him before he knew that she was married. _No, stop thinking about her and do not concern yourself with her. She is not worth your time. You do not care about her_.

Kikyo was a worthless human, on the same level as a hanyou, maybe even lower. Well, it was what Sesshomaru told himself. He did not care about someone who was lower than an insect. Kikyo was nothing. She was no one. He was not interested in her in any way other than possibly teaching her to never cross him. He was done with that trifling human wench unless he was making her feel his wrath. Yes, that was it, he promised himself.

“I will punish her eventually,” he said, as if that would take away all the other emotions. It did not stop him from wanting to put his hand through his desk, though. Thankfully, he had enough self-control to not do that. He tried to get some work done, but his mind was too jumbled to do more than brood.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo was visibly upset over what happened between her and Sesshomaru, but luckily, she was alone, so no one noticed or asked questions. It was a good thing she did not have an appointment to be with her sisters or she would have been explaining all sorts of things for the whole afternoon just because of the expression on her face. That would not go over well. She could practically feel Midoriko’s gaze on her. It would make her wither if she had not already done so. 

Thankfully, being in a big city, riding a bus, no one bothered her over what she was certain was forlorn expression, tearing at her face as depression settled over her entire being like a massive shadow. Sesshomaru was going to be out of her life. He had been a strange light in her life. He had made her feel at ease, comfortable. It was something she was not very used to, especially around a demon male. And now, he was gone. She supposed the only thing that was left to keep her sane was her sisters. She would always be thankful for them. They were always there.

She decided to go home. It seemed like the best place for her to be with the way she felt. She needed time to sort through these emotions. She doubted Naraku would be in anytime soon, so she could be miserable alone. It was safe to be dejected in the enclosed area of her own.

“Perhaps some tea once I get in will help,” she muttered as she came to her stop. Her mind scoffed at the very idea. Tea would not cast out the shadows inside of her.

Her brain began to tell her it was wrong for her to be upset over a demon exiting her life. Sesshomaru was just a demon. Sure, he brought her comfort into her world, but she had survived before him and she would survive after him. She always went on. It was what she was taught by life. 

“You can only move forward. Sometimes, you might need a little rest or help along the way, but you can only move forward,” she reminded herself as she took steps on the sidewalk. Her feet felt heavy, like they did not wish to return home yet.

She decided to go to a convenient store to buy some junk food before ending up at her apartment. She thought it would ease her mind somewhat, even though she would prefer to not admit her mind needed easing. Still, she brought ice cream and cookies. Eating junk food was a bad habit she and her sisters had from when they were feeling less than pleased with how the days were going. It helped get them through their parents’ deaths and they tended to fall back on it. Sometimes, eating such food helped remind her things were not as bad as they could be. The worst day of her life was far behind her and this, too, shall pass. 

She went home and cracked open the cookies while putting on some music, up-tempo jazz. She grabbed her sketchbook and thought she might be able to do some drawing. She curled up on the sofa with the cookies near the edge of the couch. She ended up drawing her right hand from lack of inspiration. She could draw with both of her hands and alternated between them when she practiced. She occasionally picked up a cookie and ate it.

Kikyo lost track of time and before she knew it, she heard keys in the door. She glanced at the clock on the wall and noticed it was about time for Naraku to come in. She hoped he was not drunk again, but in case he was, she mentally prepared for him. She steeled her spine and froze her nerves, not wanting to lose any part of herself should he start up.

She closed her sketchbook and put it away. She closed her cookies, too. In the past, eating anything with Naraku around resulted in a fight, as he insulted everything from what she chose to eat to the way her mouth moved as she did so. The door opened and she watched him stumble into the apartment. Apparently, it was too much to ask for him to not be drunk.

“Kikyo!” Naraku bellowed as he slammed the door shut, shaking the walls and rattling the few porcelain items they had on their shelves.

“I’m standing right here,” she pointed out. She was not even five feet away from him, so she did not see what he was yelling about.

“Why didn’t you make dinner?” he demanded, glancing into the kitchen where there was no activity whatsoever.

“I never make dinner,” she reminded him. She did not make dinner for him anyway. She would prepare it for herself at home, but never for him.

“You are quite the worthless mate, aren’t you?” he practically snarled. “Everything about you is worthless and you never seem to want to amount to anything. What good are you to me? To anyone?”

Kikyo decided against answering that. Why deal with him when he was intoxicated? She did not even like dealing with him when he was in his right frame of mind, which was relatively speaking because even then, he was a bully and sadist. She was not in the mood to entertain him tonight. She had her own wounds to mend.

She turned to retreat into the bedroom as she usually did when he was in the apartment. He knew better than to follow her in there, even if he thought he was more powerful than she was. She wanted to be alone, especially now since she would have to bother with Naraku without the leisure afternoons with Sesshomaru. It was amazing how a few hours with Sesshomaru made Naraku tolerable for an evening.

Naraku did not want her to leave just yet. He grabbed her by the arm, grip stronger than ever, and pulled her to him. She was about to demand he release her, but he beat her to talking.

“Do you know that dog bastard is going to ruin me? I’ve been building myself, clawing my way to the top of these wretches, and now he’s going to ruin me. No, I won’t let him do that,” Naraku said, his breath threatening to intoxicate her.

She narrowed her gaze on him. “Naraku, you’re drunk.” Her tone had a hint of warning under it.

He continued to lament, as if he had not heard her, as if she were some statue he needed to bawl to. “I can’t let him do that. I won’t let him do that. I’m going to get him off of this account. I won’t let him bring me down with him. Him and his shitty artwork. His art is worse than yours. He’s nothing, less than you could even be. I definitely won’t be brought down by one arrogant dog, no. Not someone as worthless as he. I won’t have it.”

“You are drunk,” she repeated, but he was not listening to word that she said.

He was in a ranting mood and held her by her arm to make sure he had someone to share his evil plot with. “I refuse to let him tear down what I have. I will be recognized. I will be heard. I will be at the top of it all. I’m going go speak with our clients personally. I’m going to tell them just what that dog bastard does all day and I’m going to get them to drop him. They don’t need him when they have me, anyway. I’ve always been good to their account, which is why they left with me. They don’t need him and I will make sure they remember that, make sure they pass that along to anyone who might work with him. Everyone should know how worthless he is. It’ll teach that ass to throw me into a wall. I’ll ruin him before he can ruin me. I’ll show him my power. I’ll show them all. He’ll end up like others who underestimated and opposed me, left with nothing, as nothing, just fodder for the rats.”

She was not entirely sure what he meant by that final sentence. He claimed to hurt people, which she believed. There were times he hinted to doing more, though. Had he committed murders? She did not know, but he liked for her to think he had.

“I’ll bury him in every way possible,” he snarled, giving her a squeeze.

Kikyo sighed. She could very easily escape his grip, but then she might end up killing him. While it was no great lose to the world at this point, she had little desire to have to explain the situation to the police. So, just let him ramble on about how he was going to talk the clients into taking that “dog bastard” off of the account.

He let her in on everything he planned to tell the clients when he met up with them, as if she cared to know. She was not really listening to him, but he seemed to think she was and that was what mattered. He would fly out to meet with the clients in person to make it seem like he was very concerned about their account when in fact he was only concerned about his reputation and their money. It was good news to her. He would be gone for the weekend, so now all she had to do was make it through the week. _I can do that_. A free weekend would give her time to recollect herself and regroup.

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru was irritable, more so than usual. His annoyance could be seen on his face, which was rare. He was typically stoic in appearance at all time. Many of his coworkers believed he probably would not even blink if he were to have his arm chopped off, yet now, they were able to tell something bothered him. They did not know what that something was. They assumed his forced partnership with Naraku was finally getting to him because that was the only explanation they had and he had thrown the half-demon into the wall a couple of days ago.

Really, he was not even thinking about Naraku anymore. The half-breed had not polluted his office with his presence and he had not opened his mouth to Sesshomaru since the dog demon tossed him into that wall. No, the thing that bothered Sesshomaru was he already missed Kikyo and he had only been without her company for a couple of days. It also bothered him that her absence bothered him.

“I do not care about her,” he hissed to his desk. If only the itch under his skin believed him.

He should not care about her after the way she attempted to toy with him, pretended to him, offered herself when she was someone else’s. How dare she be married! But, he had grown fond of her from the brief time he spent with her. Parts of him called out for her. He longed to be with her, just around her. She eased his soul, something he did not even know he had until she came along.

The dog demon did not know what he should do. Should he try to bear being without her? It was already like shredding his guts. Surely, the pain would lessen with time, right? Should he let her go, then? He would have time to find himself once more and become the demon he used to be. Part of him feared he might never be the demon he used to be. His odd human had opened something inside of him and it would never close. He could feel it. Just the fact that he thought of her as “his human” was enough to tell him this was not something that would simply vanish.

Should he try to at least recapture the friendship they had? Being around her had been enough. He had never actually considered something more with her than what they had. But, now, knowing she was married and how it upset him, he considered maybe he had wanted something more. Should he try to go for more? Or should he just look to get revenge against her? Usually, he would have gone with that last option without hesitating, but he could not do that when it came to the woman who he believed was an angel.

“This is like being cursed,” he growled to the air. He felt torn and confused, which was not something he was used to. 

The way he felt, he knew he would not feel better if he hurt Kikyo. The very thought made his stomach turn. He already knew he would feel worse if she was injured in any way. He was still bothered by the fact that he had bruised her by accident when he grabbed her in the museum to examine her wrists. If he was upset with himself over an accident, he could not even fathom how he would feel if he purposely caused her some kind of distress. 

Well, he doubted he could just let her go. He had not seen her for two days and he felt as if he had been run over several times by a speeding bus. Everything was growing increasing irksome, tension winding its way through his system, and he felt like he might snap at any moment. He knew if he could see her face, hear her voice, anything involving her, he would feel calm and ready to deal with the garbage the rest of the world threw at him.

So, it seemed he was really only left with two options — he could try to recapture what they had or he could try for more. At the moment, he would settle on attempting to recapture their friendship and he doubted that would be very hard. He was, after all, the great Sesshomaru. How hard could it be to get back a friend? They had not even had an argument, really, so it was not even like he would have to apologize.

He only had to think of something worthwhile for Kikyo to agree to meet with him. The first thing that came to mind was a museum, but he did not think that was grand enough. After all, she could go to a museum with her elder sister. He needed something unique. What would an interesting angel like Kikyo like and what would he be able to make it through?

He had not gone to the movies in ages and refused to give them any of his hard earned money. He would not even take Rin to the movies. But, Kikyo was a lover of art, in all of its forms from what he could tell. He supposed she might appreciate a play and the city was full of plays that held some potential. He could take her to a play and maybe out to dinner. He had his doubts that it was appropriate to take a married woman out on what might appear to be a date, but he really did not care. If she agreed, he would take her. If her husband was doing right by her in the first place, Sesshomaru figured she would not have sought his friendship, unless humans were _that_ strange.

Now, he would have to look into plays or some other form of theater. As he searched for some form of entertainment, he was informed he had some luck after all. It turned out Naraku was going to be gone on Friday. Well, now he wanted to celebrate. He would be without that pest for three whole days. Perhaps there was at least one merciful god.

Sesshomaru made his plans for Friday. He got tickets to a show he heard was worth a look. There were rave reviews about it on the Internet. He also made reservations at a fantastic restaurant he loved to celebrate the fact that he would be half-breed-free for a day. He then called the one thing that would make everything totally perfect.

“Sesshomaru?” Kikyo answered her phone in a surprised tone. She had not been expecting to hear from him ever again.

“Kikyo, I was wondering if you are free Friday,” the dog demon stated. It seemed like he completely forgot about the interaction they had days ago, but that was not the case. He chose to ignore it. If he pressed forward, she might do the same.

“I was planning to spend the day with my sisters,” she answered. Since Naraku would be gone, she decided to spend the whole weekend with her sisters. Kaede had cheered when she shared those plans with the pair.

“Is there no way to talk you into joining me for a show and dinner?” he inquired.

“Joining you?” she echoed in a deadpan tone. She could not believe he really wanted her company anymore and she thought he might be joking with her, even though she was aware he did not joke. But, then again, she was also aware he did not go to shows.

“Yes, join me. I have already purchased us some very good seats at a play I heard was halfway decent. I have also made reservations at one of my favorite restaurants and have told them to give us a very choice wine,” he explained. It did not occur to him it might be helpful if he apologized for his behavior when they last met, or at the very least apologize for bruising her. He was the great Sesshomaru, after all. He did not make mistakes that needed apologizing.

“You have gone through great lengths to tempt me into agreeing,” she commented.

“It will be a good outing for us. It would keep us away from the museum, which is necessary because too much of a good thing is supposedly unhealthy… not that I agree with such thinking,” he replied. He doubted he would ever get his fill of Kikyo. 

“I know you don’t. I suppose I could spend some time with you Friday. I would still have the night and weekend to be with my sisters,” she stated. “But…”

“But?” He managed to keep down a growl.

“You grabbed me.” She would not let him pretend things did not happen. She was not so easy. 

He almost swallowed his tongue. How dare she bring that up? _How dare she? You’re kidding, right? You marred her flawless skin._ “I was concerned.”

“I understand that.”

Sesshomaru was not exactly sure what happened there, but he felt like this was the end of things. Perhaps she did not need an apology, just for him to acknowledge something happened between them. It was not difficult. 

“Excellent. I shall pick you up in the evening. Is that all right?” he asked because of her circumstances.

“It’s fine,” she answered. Naraku was leaving in the morning.

“All right,” he said. He was pleased she had not been very difficult. He supposed she wanted to see him as much as he wanted to see her and why not? He was the great Sesshomaru, after all.

-*-(New day)-*- 

Sesshomaru waited outside Kikyo’s apartment building. She did not live too far from him. It was a good thing because he planned to see more of her. He watched her as she exited, wearing her usual clothing, red slacks and a white shirt, which he did not mind. She had her own unique style and he would not call it informal, but he would not call it formal either. It was fine for almost any situation, though.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” she apologized.

“Not at all,” he replied. He had only just gotten there a minute ago.

The pair of friends went out to the show and enjoyed it. Sesshomaru knew he enjoyed it because Kikyo found some substance in it and shared every little bit she liked with an explanation for why she liked it. It was a good thing she could find meaning in plenty of things or he would have been demanding his money back. Instead, he sat through the event and was entertained by it through Kikyo. He would not mind experiencing more things in such a manner.

They went to dinner after the show. It was much like their lunch dates. They discussed various topics for a few minutes at a time. It seemed they did not care about what they conversed on. It was more they just enjoyed being around each other and found it easy to talk with each other when they wanted to talk. 

“Sesshomaru, you don’t have to park,” Kikyo stated as the dog demon was doing just that as he came to her building.

“I do if I want to walk you up,” he replied. 

“You don’t have to do that either,” she informed him.

“It’s rather late and I would prefer to see you safely to your door,” he countered. 

“It is unnecessary,” she argued.

“Let me be the judge of that,” he stated. 

Kikyo gave up the argument with a sigh. She could see Sesshomaru would not bend on the issue. Sesshomaru was not sure why he insisted on going with her to her apartment. Was he attempting to see what kind of environment she lived in? Was he hoping to catch a glimpse of her husband? Or at least get an idea of what kind of man she was married to? What was up there for him? Perhaps a nightcap, part of him dared to consider, even though there was no guarantee she would even think to let him in, even if her husband was not home.

Sesshomaru parked the car and they both exited the vehicle. They rode the elevator in silence and walked to her apartment door when they arrived at her floor. She put the keys in and as she worked the locks, she wondered if she should invite him in. Would he think poorly of her if she did such a thing? She was not looking to do anything with him, but she thought it would be polite to invite him if only for a moment. Nothing had to come of it.

“Would you like to come in, Sesshomaru? Perhaps I could make us some tea,” Kikyo offered.

Sesshomaru thought on the proposal for a moment. Could he intrude in another man’s home while coveting that man’s wife? He had some manners as a nobleman. Did he even want to chance seeing a picture of the man Kikyo was married to? After all, knowing what the man looked like would probably upset him. Did he want to be upset again after such a great day?

-8-8-8-8- 

Next time: Will Sesshomaru take Kikyo up on her proposal and enter her home? If so, will they really just be having some tea?


	6. Sinner Angel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.
> 
> A/N: This is where the rating goes up.

 

6: Sinner Angel 

Sesshomaru decided to follow Kikyo into her apartment and take her up on the offer of tea. He doubted there was some hidden meaning beyond the offer. Kikyo was not that type of woman and he knew that. He still would like to be in her company for a while longer, even if it meant suffering through pictures of her with her husband or her husband’s horrible scent coating the apartment or something like that. Kikyo trumped everything.

“What kind of tea would you like?” Kikyo inquired, hanging her keys up on a hook by the door.

Sesshomaru did not answer right away. A peculiar odor permeating through the apartment distracted him. It was a familiar odor at that. It smelled like a certain half-breed he wanted to tear to pieces. The scent invaded him.

“Sesshomaru,” Kikyo said.

“I’ll take whatever you’re having,” the dog demon replied, trying to subtly breathe through his mouth. He drank tea on occasion, but did not have a particular favorite one he needed to have all of the time.

“All right. Make yourself at home while I get things ready,” she told him.

The golden-eyed male nodded and looked around the apartment while Kikyo went into the kitchen to fix their tea. That horrid aroma continued to trespass through his body and he hated to think what it might mean. He looked around the place for evidence of what her husband looked like, but there were no pictures on the wall to speak of. There was only junk around the house as far as he was concerned and he doubted Kikyo would think to buy the stuff, so he concluded her husband lacked taste, which only backed up what his nose told him.

“Kikyo,” Sesshomaru said.

“Yes?” Kikyo replied.

The nobleman turned to give her his complete attention and noticed she had her back to him. She was leaning over the counter, preparing their tea. He let out a slow breath as inappropriate thoughts marched through his head when his golden gaze fell upon her form, hips and other parts beckoning him like a guiding light. He took a step closer to her and the thoughts were not getting any better as he had a look of the kitchen.

His brain considered how much he would enjoy it if he took Kikyo at that very moment on the very counter she was working on in the very position she was in. She would love it, too. He would make sure of that. He would worship her against the counter. And then he dared to think of having her against the refrigerator and then maybe he could put her on top of the counter. _Stop such thinking! Kikyo is not some whore to have my way with._

Kikyo was a respectable married woman. Surely, she would not consider any adulterous acts, even with him, Sesshomaru told his mind. And then he mentally scoffed. If he really wanted Kikyo, he was certain he could have her just like any other woman, but why would he want a human? Maybe it was because he did not view her as a human, but as an angel. He was just trying to make up excuses to avoid doing what he knew he wanted to do, his brain accused him. _Perhaps I should leave_. He needed to get out of the apartment before he did something he would regret.

“Sesshomaru?” Kikyo said because he said her name, but he never elaborated on what he wanted.

Sesshomaru blinked and turned his attention to her. “It’s nothing. Where is your husband?” He did not care. He needed something to take his mind off of bending Kikyo over.

“He went on some trip,” she replied with a dismissive wave of her hand, which let him know that she did not want to speak about him and that was fine by her guest. “Sesshomaru, how do you take you tea?”

“I’ll have mine the way you have yours,” he answered.

“All right.”

Sesshomaru turned his attention back to the things around the apartment. “What are all of these things around this your place?” It looked like junk, which he did not expect of her. Where was the fine art or historical artifacts?

“My husband has a bad habit of collecting little bits and baubles that happen to catch his eye. It seems things don’t have to match when it comes to his idea of how a place should look. It might also be his way of warding off visitors.”

Sesshomaru nodded, even though she had her back to him and she could not see what he was doing. She was married to inferior being, he concluded. He wondered what would make her bind herself to someone lowly.

“Kikyo, why did you get married?” he inquired in his usual tone. He did not care if his question would be considered prying. He wanted answers.

“I thought the outside that was presented to me was the truth,” she answered with a bit of a sigh underneath her usual voice. She was not so proud that she could not admit she had been fooled. Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do about it for now, as she would honor her vows.

“And it wasn’t?” he asked while seeming to glide over to her. He moved behind her and by her side. She glanced up at him and he had to fight down a smile. He enjoyed seeing his visage in her deep chocolate eyes.

“I was blind,” she replied and then turned her attention back to what she was doing.

“Are you still blind?” he inquired, leaning down to her level. He was practically nuzzled in her neck because of where he stood. Her scent flooded him, surrounded him, and he was glad to drown in her.

“I don’t always believe what is presented is the truth now,” she answered while moving away from him. She let loose a low breath when there was space between them.

The dog demon did not react to her retreat and did not give any indication that he heard her let out a sigh. He merely stood back up to his proper height and watched her. It seemed she was a jaded woman, which he had no problem with. She could be that way with her husband, but he was going to work beyond that. He was, after all, Sesshomaru. He was perfection, outside and inside.

“Understandable,” Sesshomaru commented about her disbelief, eyes never leaving her.

Kikyo did not reply and the demon exited the kitchen to look around again and give her a moment to keep herself together. He frowned as he took in the stench mixed in with her heavenly scent. Could it be that she really shared her home with that bastard half-demon? It disgusted him. How had that filthy half-breed convinced such a brilliant creature to take his unholy hand in marriage? Was he really _that_ manipulative? Well, considering how some of the people around the office took to the hanyou, yes, he was that manipulative. But, those people were idiots. This was Kikyo. He could not believe that bastard fooled Kikyo.

Kikyo leaned against the wall in the kitchen while Sesshomaru walked around. She sighed and shook her head. What did she think she was doing? _Calm down. You’re merely having a friend over for tea_. She nearly scoffed out loud from that response.

It was not like she had one of her sisters over. She had a man in her home at night after going on what most would consider it to be a date. Was she doing something foolish? It seemed that way, especially the way her body practically melted when all he did was stand next to her. Anyone would tell her this was something a fool would do. When she plotted out the night so far in her mind, even though she was nervous, she did not currently feel the fool.

Of course, she had not felt the fool when she first fell for Naraku’s schemes either. But, Sesshomaru was not Naraku. Their personalities seemed to be complete opposites. Naraku was all about proving himself, trying to make up for feelings of inadequacy, and trying to show he was superior. Sesshomaru did not have to do any of that, feeling like he was above all by simply existing. He was very comfortable and confident with himself by being himself. Sesshomaru did not have to put on airs, did not have to prove anything, did not need to con anyone. Even so, what could become of the night? What could become of them? Nothing. She was tied to a deceitful hanyou at the moment and even though she disliked him for the most part, she had made vows to him, which she intended to keep to remain an honorable person.

Kikyo fixed the tea and cut two slices of cake. She had gone shopping earlier with the idea of buying some junk food to celebrate she was Naraku-free for the weekend. She had planned to take the sweets to her sisters’ apartment, but then Sesshomaru called and put that off for a day.

“Sesshomaru,” Kikyo called to let him know things were ready.

“This is an interesting place you have here. You got no say in anything about it, hmm?” Sesshomaru commented as he walked over to the small dining room table to join her.

“Not that I wanted one,” she replied. She had little desire to be in the apartment most of the time. It was not her home. It was a place she slept while Naraku tried to figure out how to make it her prison.

“Why not? Wouldn’t you want something here that proclaims it your home, too?” he asked as he took a seat.

“This is not my home,” she answered.

Sesshomaru nodded, but she doubted he understood it very well. He sipped his tea and she did the same. He did not touch the piece of cake, but enjoyed watching her eat her piece. She noticed him watching her, but she did not say anything about it.

“You can have mine, too, if you like,” Sesshomaru offered her while pushing his dessert toward her.

“That’s all right. You don’t like cake?” she asked. While she had a bit of a sweet tooth, she could not eat two whole pieces of cake back to back. She would save it for later. A piece for her to have after she left the rest of the cake with Midoriko and Kaede.

“I’m not very into sweets,” he replied.

“No?” She was not really asking a question because she noticed through most of their lunches together he never had a dessert with it. He also did not have sweet drinks, preferring something tart.

“From what I can tell, you eat enough for the both of us,” he remarked. Even though his face did not change, there was a light in his eyes that always told her he smiled on the inside.

“I think I shall try to change your mind for as long as we know each other,” she commented. Life was better with cake. Sesshomaru would probably be happier with a slice or two every now and then. If not cake, pie, ice cream, donuts, or something.

Sesshomaru only half-smirked in response to that statement. He could learn to like sweet things. He already liked her, after all. If she was his, he would never leave her alone in their dreary home. Their home would not be dreary either. It would not be a hodgepodge of curios with no rhyme or reason to it. He would take her everywhere just to be in her radiant presence. He bet if he always had her by his side, he would be able to tolerate the world much easier.

He continued to watch her and seemed to make a decision in a split second. He stood up and went over to her. She was hardly a foot away with the small dining room table and he seemed to be on her within the blink of an eye. He leaned down and captured her mouth with his own. He gently kissed her and she returned the embrace. It was like the planets aligned for both of them in that moment. She did not think to protest until he pulled away just a bit.

“Sesshomaru, we cannot do this,” Kikyo stated, even though her entire body buzzed for him. She had never felt this way before. She was ready to come out of her skin for him.

“And why is that we cannot?” he inquired. 

“I am… married,” she forced the word out through clenched teeth. She would love nothing more than to be able to be with him, but she was married. She had a husband and she had made vows to him. She would be faithful to those vows. Her word was her most valuable possession. How would anyone look at her, listen to her, believe her if she could not keep her word?

“He does not deserve you,” Sesshomaru stated in a firm tone, no room for argument, as if that erased everything that existed.

“He is the one I have,” she replied. She wished things were different. Feeling Sesshomaru’s lips to her own were a brief glimpse of heaven, but it was not for her.

“No, he is not. I am the one who has you,” the dog demon said. Kikyo was his. He was not sure when it happened, but it was cemented, signed, sealed, branded when their lips touched. He could feel it in his bones that she was meant for him.

She shook her head. “Sesshomaru, I cannot do this. I have a husband and I have made a promise.” She needed him to understand how much that meant to her.

“Did he not also make a promise? Is he not supposed to honor, cherish, and protect you? Has he done any of that?” Sesshomaru inquired.

“Just because he cannot keep his word does not mean I do not have to keep mine,” Kikyo argued. She stood up and put some distance between her and the nobleman. 

Sesshomaru would later find the exchange endearing, but at the moment he was frustrated she would stay true to the bastard she was married to, all the while agreeing he was a bastard, knowing he was unworthy. She rejected him, perfection, to remain with some grimy half-breed bastard who he was certain was the same annoyance he had to put up with during the work week. There was no reason for her to do so, except she was so noble, like the angel he believed her to be.

He looked at the distance she placed between them and calculated how long it would take for him to close it. He would be on her before she even realized he moved, he concluded, but he did not move. He wanted to rationalize things to make sure she was comfortable with everything that happened and for her to understand why it was all right for her to give in. If she felt a fraction of what he felt in that brief kiss, she knew they were meant to be. 

“Kikyo, you gave your word to someone who did not exist. You gave your word to a man who lied to you and who will probably continue to lie to you,” Sesshomaru pointed out.

“That doesn’t make my word any less than it was at the time,” Kikyo countered. 

“It makes you unbound to such a vow. You gave your word to a phantom, to mist. If you promised to never hurt someone because they made the same vow and then that person turned around and stabbed you in the heart, what would you do? You would only stand there and bleed because you gave your word not to hurt the person?” he inquired.

Kikyo thought on it for a moment. “I suppose it depends.” Her voice did not waver, but the fact that she considered it was more than enough for him.

“What does it depend on?” he asked.

“Did the person purposely hurt me or not,” she answered. Intent was everything, but she knew where he was going with this. Part of her dared to consider he was correct. She made vows to someone who was not real, to someone who went out of his way to break his marriage vows to her. 

“Did this person purposely hurt you?” he inquired and she looked away. He waited a moment and silence reigned over the room. He decided to speak when it was clear she was not. “You know what you want, Kikyo. What do I have to say for you to go with what you want?”

“There is nothing you can say,” she informed him. She was not one who went tit for tat. Yes, Naraku hurt her intentionally and, no, he was not the person she thought he was. Sesshomaru had good points, but she had principles. If she gave in, she would end up with nothing, still bound to Naraku, and there was a large possibility she would not see Sesshomaru again. Even if he meant for this to be something more than what it seemed, how could he respect her should she give in?

He tilted his head as he regarded her. “Is it you don’t trust me, Kikyo? You think I am only here to manipulate you as he did?”

“I think you only want one thing.”

Sesshomaru smirked a bit. “You’re right,” he conceded. He doubted they were thinking of the same thing.

“I know,” she stated.

The dog demon then moved and the space between them disappeared. He stared down at her with intense golden eyes. She nearly gulped because of the sudden closeness, but she held it back. The problem was that he could smell just what she was going through and he could even hear her racing heart. She was like an injured deer cornered by a hungry wolf. 

“I want you,” Sesshomaru told her. “I want you to be mine because you are. You are wasted on whomever it is you’re married to. I will cherish you, now and forever. I will treat you the way you should be, like I have, only better,” he vowed. 

“Sesshomaru,” she whispered.

“Let me treat you like the angel you are,” he said, caressing her pale cheek with two long fingers. 

She closed her eyes. “I cannot…” she replied. She could not ruin herself with him, even though she longed to give in. What kind of woman would she be if her word was worthless and if her loyalty shifted so easily? How could he respect her if she did? How could she respect herself?

“You are.”

Sesshomaru leaned down and kissed the petite woman again. She ordered herself to push him away, but she did not, could not. She did not fight him in any way, could not fight him. She accepted the kiss because she wanted it, longed for it, craved it down into the depths of her. And then she reminded herself that at one point in time, she wanted Naraku, too, and look at where that got her. It was then she pushed him away.

The dog demon growled deep in his throat, but not loud enough for her to hear. He needed her to yield soon or the evening was not going to go as he wanted it. He needed her to stop being so irrational with keeping a promise to a liar. They were meant to be. She had to feel it. 

“Sesshomaru, you should leave,” Kikyo stated, her voice quivering. Her heart raced and her nerves trembled. She understood what it meant to feel weak in the knees now. She was not sure how she was still standing, but she knew she fell now, it would be on so many levels.

“And why should I do that?” he inquired.

“Because I want you to,” she answered. Well, because it was the right thing to do. What she wanted was not up for discussion. 

“That’s not what you want, Kikyo,” he said and he stepped closer to her.

Her skin tingled, as if it could sense him. She backed away until she hit a wall. He stood in front of her, cutting off her escape. It took all of her willpower to keep her breathing under control. Having him loom before her was breathtaking. His scent invaded her, made her feel like she could float away. No, he definitely needed to leave before things got out of control.

“It is,” she insisted. She _needed_ him to leave now.

“That’s not what this is telling me,” he commented and he placed two fingers on her heart. He could now feel it beating under his fingertips and he enjoyed it.

“This would not be right,” she said.

“This is what you want. There is no right and wrong. There is only what you want and what you don’t want,” he retorted.

“Only in a demon’s mind,” she argued. She forgot demons had different philosophical views on matters like this.

Sesshomaru smirked a bit as if he was amused. He enjoyed how she knew things considered for demons. Demons did not believe in right and wrong for the most part. A demon could have empathy and very much act on something with the thoughts of others in mind, but it was not so much right or wrong. There was what they wanted and what they did not want. He wanted Kikyo and she wanted him, so in his mind, they should have been in bed already, too busy to be having a pointless discussion like this one.

“In a demon’s mind, but also in your heart. Your heart is telling you what is right and it is not agreeing with what your mouth is saying,” he pointed out.

He was right, Kikyo silently conceded. She wanted him. She wanted the man who seemed to be everything Naraku was not. She wanted the man who desired her as she was, who valued her opinion, who believed in her, and who enjoyed doing things _with_ her rather than _to_ her. But, what if that was just how Sesshomaru was presenting himself? What if he shed his skin like Naraku did? She would be a fool for the second time and her word would also be worthless. And, even if Sesshomaru was who he seemed, eventually, he would not be able to stand being with her for the simple fact she was married. He wanted her now, but he could not possibly want her forever.

“You have to trust me, Kikyo,” Sesshomaru whispered, as if he knew that was what she was debating over in her head.

“Why do I have to?” Kikyo asked. She already trusted him. If she did not trust him, she would not have met up with him in the first place. Their friendship would have ended when he grabbed her, but here they were. _How_ did she trust him was the question. The trust he wanted, was it something she could give?

“Because you know I will not hurt you, so you have to remind yourself that. You know me. You have seen me. I will continue to treat you as I have. You know I would give you everything you want and need. It would be my honor to do this. This is not a trick. I would not waste my time on such,” he explained.

Kikyo silently conceded once again. He was not the type to waste his time trying to toy with her. Or at least, he did not seem like the type. _Well, what is life without a chance?_ What if he was what she thought and what if he was being sincere? She would miss that opportunity if she lumped him in with Naraku, the man who his company actually eased the agony of being with.

Why should she suffer, knowing Naraku intended things to be that way? How could she honor vows Naraku broke daily? Beyond that, what if demons were right? What if sometimes it was not about right or wrong, but about what you wanted?

“Nothing can come of this,” Kikyo said in a whisper. She was married, even if the vows were half a lie. It was not like they could have an actual relationship or they could be anything to each other beyond friends.

“Many things can come from this,” the dog demon seemed to promise her and he leaned down again.

Sesshomaru kissed Kikyo a third time and that time she melted into him. The embrace started out sweet, much like a peach, but grew more intense as it carried on. It became licentious in nature and more fervent than a forest fire. She had never had such a kiss before and he had never gotten so much satisfaction from such a kiss. Something inside of him settled while something inside of her flared. The spark of their lips exploded into something beyond either of them. She whimpered and the sound vibrated through him in ways he would never be able to describe, except one key area.

The demon noble debated with himself with just rutting Kikyo against the wall since they were there, but he decided against such a thing. She deserved better than that for their first time, especially in a living room that had a stench clinging to it. He hoped the bedroom smelled better or things were actually going to have to wait because he would have to take her to his home. He really could not take much more of that putrid scent.

To get his mind back on track, Sesshomaru gently nipped at Kikyo’s lips as an attempt to get her to open her mouth, which she did. His tongue rushed out of his mouth to enter hers and sought out her tongue. He bit back a groan as she moaned from their tongues dancing together. Tasting her was like touching heaven and he was certain he would never forget how delicious she was. His body felt enflamed and he needed to sate it with Kikyo.

Sesshomaru’s hands decided to get into the act, believing they needed to be doing something. He lightly caressed her torso through her shirt, which was a light material because it was warm outside. He only wanted to get an idea of what she was like for now. A tease for both of them. He would leave the heavy fondling for later when they in bed, bodies close, and desires higher than ever.

One of his hands wandered lower and began feeling Kikyo’s slim thigh, which held the hand’s attention for a few moments. He imagined what her skin would feel like under his fingertips. Silk would have nothing on her, he was certain. And the way she pressed against him, seeking more of him, he would give her any and everything she wanted if she would do that more often.

Eventually, his hand made its way to her rear and he did not hesitate in kneading that area. She moaned again and the sounds sizzled down his spine, settling in his groin. The fact that he gave her pleasure and she was making it known was pure paradise for him. He wanted to make her feel good all the time in various ways, but physically was his number one priority right now. 

The platinum-haired male lifted Kikyo into his arms without breaking their kiss. She automatically wrapped her arms around his neck and he went in search for the bedroom. It was not hard to find since the apartment only had three rooms in the back — the bathroom, an office, and the bedroom. When he entered the bedroom, he was thankful to be assaulted by her scent and nothing more. He silently thanked whatever divine being there might be for that small favor.

He placed Kikyo down softly at the head of the bed. He tried to pull away, but she would not release him. This made him feel warmed in a way he never had.

“Kikyo,” he said against her lips.

“Hmm?” She hummed and he could taste it.

Everything inside of him tumbled against itself. “I just need…” Somehow this barely coherent, incomplete thought got through to her and she let him go. He pulled away from her to have a moment to take in the sight and give her a moment to reflect on what was going on. He did not mind giving her a chance to back out, mostly because he was so certain that she would not do such a thing.

Her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath. Her face was flush and her hair fanned out around her as she rested on her elbows. Her eyes were ablaze, making him want her all the more.

“You are heavenly,” he informed her and she looked away.

She was not used to being complimented. Not that he expected her husband to know he should tell her what a splendid creature she was as often as possible. Even if Naraku did compliment her, Kikyo would never be stupid enough to believe he was sincere.

“You don’t mean that,” she said.

“Indeed, I do,” he promised. He meant everything he said. “I mean everything. You mean everything to me.”

“How?” It was only a few weeks. How could she mean anything to this demon?

He shook his head slightly. It was a mystery to him. “I do not know, but you do. You are everything.”

Sesshomaru leaned back down and captured her mouth in another amazingly passionate kiss. His hands took hold of her shirt and lifted the momentarily useless cloth away. Once the shirt was gone, he took a moment to take her in once more. Milky skin and pert breasts with her ebony hair haloed around her. His hands went back to her torso and caressed her again. As he suspected, silk had nothing on the smoothness of her flesh.

He had to kiss her again. She received him as if she was made for him. Their lips and tongues moved together, merging, and appreciating each other in ways no other would ever know. He touched her as if she was fragile, but with enough pressure to make her cry out into his mouth. He swallowed the sound and felt like he had taken part of her into himself and it made him stronger.

She grabbed for him, trying hold onto his shoulders, but he would not let her. He pushed himself up, moving her hands, but keeping their mouths together. He used one hand to hold both of hers above her head. She groaned, a protest, and arched against him. He wanted to smile, but held back.

He broke the kiss to look down at her as his free hand went to rid her of another useless piece of clothing, her bra. She had on a plain white bra. There was nothing catching about it, which he expected of her. She was not one for ornamentation and she did not have anyone to impress with fancy undergarments. He pulled the cloth away as if it offended him and in a way it did because it hid parts of her from his desiring gaze. He exhaled slowly when he caught sight of her perfect form.

“You…” He kissed her pale neck. “Are…” He kissed her collarbone. “Perfect.” He kissed the top milky breast.

Kikyo squirmed underneath him. She was not used to such a treatment, like he revered her. But, she also did not like having her hands restrained. She groaned again and tugged at her hands. He did not release her, nor did he halt his actions.

“Sesshomaru,” she moaned as he kissed the swell of breast. She felt so alive, so beyond alive. It was almost like being outside of her body.

“Let me,” he breathed out the two words. It was a request for so many things he did not have time to list. She understood and gave him the lightest of nods.

He started to explore the creamy sea of flesh that was bare to him. He made a path of wet kisses all over the smooth, beautiful ocean, making sure to take his time to properly adore every part of her.

Of course, in his journey, the dog demon halted to take time with the twin islands on the sea of milky skin. His free hand attended to one while his mouth handled the other with care. He tasted one while tenderly kneading the other one. She was so amazingly soft and delicious.

Kikyo arched into his touch while crying out, voice echoing through the small room. He pretended to not notice as the sounds came faster and at a higher pitch. She needed the attention he provided. She had never experienced such care and affection. It felt like paradise. He made her feel as if she was in Eden. He would like to provide for her for eternity.

She tasted divine to him and he would have stayed where he was all night if he was not so certain better things lay ahead, further down the wonderful sea. He made sure to remain at the delightful pair of islands, switching his attentions, until Kikyo writhed underneath him, wanting more, twisting for more. He still had more torturous things to do, but he did not let her know that.

Sesshomaru released Kikyo for a moment and left her panting on the bed while he freed himself from his jacket, shirt, and tie. He was very much overdressed for their current activity and so was she as far as he was concerned. By the time she recovered, he was unbuttoning her pants. He liberated her from the rest of her clothing quite rapidly, to the point where she hardly noticed.

The dog demon once again had to take a moment to look at Kikyo. There were no words that he could speak that would even begin to express what he believed that he was looking at. So, he decided on one word: perfect. She was perfect and she was his.

“You are perfection,” he said and he meant it. She was more than a feast for the eyes. She was everything.

Clawed fingers began caressing slender, velvety thighs while an eager mouth licked around a perfect bellybutton. Sesshomaru was ready to go off the deep end because he could smell her so clearly now. He had never caught the scent of something so marvelous and he was not going to let that smell tantalize him any more than it had already. His mouth watered at the thought of tasting her so intimately.

“Sesshomaru, what are you doing?” Kikyo inquired when he began moving below her navel. Her voice shook with anticipation as her eyes tracked him.

“Answering a call,” he replied, fingertips ghosting across her skin. The insides of her thighs were downy soft and her scent flared, intoxicating.

As he got to where he desired to be, he began his examination of the hidden treasure. His tongue darted out for a closer look and he was nearly decapitated because Kikyo tried to close her legs on reflex. He caught her limbs before she caused him severe head trauma and then went back to his task. He got the feeling he was the first person to have her in this way and he would love to be the last.

“Sesshomaru,” she cried out. Her voice was muffled to his ears, but it still hummed through his blood. The sound of his name on her lips was enough to make him never want to be anywhere else except between her legs. He gave her flesh a gentle nip before his tongue continued on.

Kikyo took a hissing inhale that did not seem to have an end. She had never felt anything so unbelievably good. It was like lightning danced down each of her nerves, burning her with pleasure. She grabbed the bed and held on tight as he continued. Her hips moved on their own, trying to keep up with his wonderful mouth.

“Sesshomaru…” Kikyo whimpered as tears gathered in her chocolate eyes from the ecstasy. She had no idea that bliss could exist on the level she felt at the moment. Was that how intimacy was supposed to be?

He glanced up because the salty aroma of her tears caught his attention. Her lip was caught between her teeth and her beautiful milky skin was now flushed a dull scarlet. She never looked more beautiful. He went back to delighting her.

He reveled in her taste. She was so delectable, like nectar of the gods. He had to remind himself there were other things to do or he would have stayed there for hours and she would have turned to a liquid from the way she felt. What she was doing to him was not something he was used to, namely enchanting him with her mere existence. But, he was willing to let it go for the moment. It was not important.

The important thing was the main event. Sesshomaru shed his pants as if they were poisonous. He joined Kikyo on the bed and attached her mouth to his own, starting another passion driven kiss. She responded as if she thirsted for him, pulling his closer, rubbing up and down his back like he was a lifeline. The mere fact that she wanted him as much as he wanted her was enough to drive Sesshomaru out of his mind. He had to have her now.

Sesshomaru reached between them, fingers seeking her treasure once more. He wanted to make sure she was prepared. His fingers were soaked, so he lined himself up and pushed forward. When he connected their bodies, Kikyo surprisingly hissed in pain, which caught his attention. He stopped the kiss, needing to look into her eyes. Her face was tense, but her eyes pleading with him to stay with her.

“Are you all right?” he asked. 

“Yes. It’s been a while,” she somewhat explained.

Sesshomaru knew that information should not please him, but it did. “I’ll ease inside.”

“Slowly.”

He nodded and reached between them again. His fingers had no problem finding her pleasure spot, rubbing gentle circles. She whimpered as he slowly slid inside of her. She clutched his back and cooed as he settled home. He waited until Kikyo was all right.

“Please,” she whispered.

He had no choice, but to obey. He touched her soul. She arched her back, pressing against him. Feel the full stretch her body against his, it was maddening, it was insanity, it was the best. She was made for him. He was convinced of this.

Once again, tears fell from her eyes, but they were not out of sorrow or agony. They were tears of euphoria as she whispered his name into his ear and clutched his shoulders. Every movement she made crawled all over him, added to the way she surrounded him. It was so beautiful and then something decidedly far from perfect happened, in Sesshomaru’s opinion anyway. She felt so heavenly and every sound from her was sacred. So much so, he touched paradise before she did. It was the first time that such a thing happened to him and he blamed her for it. The blame was not negative or anything. He just had not expected being with her to be so gratifying. 

The dog demon did not say anything. He did not apologize for what happened. He never apologized. He acknowledged what happened because he knew acknowledgment was important to her. There was eye contact and she smiled. It was not amused or delighted. It was beyond him, but he wanted to see it everyday for the rest of his life.

“We’re not done,” he promised her. She only smiled more and the hands on his back caressed his shoulder blades. 

He spent the rest of the night making it up to her with his tongue, his lips, fingers, and more. He discovered something that night. Kikyo mattered as much to him as he mattered to himself because he was determined to make sure she had everything she needed that night. He quickly learned what her sounds meant and movements meant, so he could kiss her when she wanted, he could caress her as she required, and he could adore her as she deserved.

“Sesshomaru.” She keened, hands lost in his hair as he wrote his name with his tongue in between her legs. He seemed content there, hands roaming her body at his leisure. Every now and then, he nipped her thighs, a signal that he was ready for a change. Every move he made was like he was honoring her and she could feel it in her very bones. It made her try to pull him closer. So much closer than she knew was possible, but she tried anyway. She would be sore tomorrow, but she did not regret it.

He kissed his way up to her lips as he settled between her thighs. As they kissed at leisure, he eased inside of her once more. He would never tire of the feel of her and she would always welcome him.

Kikyo was left in sheer disbelief. She never knew a person could make her feel so good both emotionally and physically, especially from simple coitus. No, scratch that because there was nothing simple about what happened.

Kikyo had no idea that intercourse was supposed to be so mind-blowing. She did not know it was supposed to be soul touching. She heard stories, assumed they were made up or heavily romanticized, but this was like the stories. She could not believe he made her cry during the time and made it seem like she truly touched the heavens. 

When it was clear Kikyo was exhausted, Sesshomaru decided to call it a night. Although, it was well into the morning now. He held her close as they settled under the covers. He did not even think about what smells might be on the sheets since the whole room now smelled of their intense coupling.

Kikyo curled up to Sesshomaru and fell asleep almost instantly. He stared at her for a while. He could not believe he had just slept with a human and got more pleasure from it than any other rut he could think of. She was special and she was _his_. She was definitely his angel and he would keep her close, husband be damned.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the morning after.


	7. And Then the Sun Rose…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

7: And Then the Sun Rose… 

Sesshomaru groaned as the light of the morning sun hit his face and took him from his sleep. He turned his head, wondering why the sun was bothering him. His bed was situated to avoid such annoyances. His golden eyes then caught sight of why he was being harassed by the sun. He was not in his bed. He was in Kikyo’s bed and she was pressed against him, sound asleep. The perfectness of the picture made sun in the eyes worth it. 

He could hardly believe what happened last night and his mind could not help recollecting it. He had fallen asleep in her bed after making love to her throughout the night. He smiled as details of everything they had done fluttered through his mind with amazing clarity. He could not recall a time when intercourse was so fulfilling. Usually, he would have had his way with the female and then gone home, but that thought had not even entered his mind while he was with Kikyo. Hell, he did not want to go home right now.

Kikyo was not a bit of fun like other females had been for him. No, there was something about her that put her way above everyone, save maybe his sister. She was special and she already had a place in his hidden heart, even though they had not known each other very long. He was already making plans for her to be his eternal mate, even though she was married and they had only just spent the night together.

He figured once she woke up, he could take her out for breakfast. She would probably enjoy such a thing, like she seemed to enjoy their lunches. She would not be the only one who would like having a meal together and until then, he decided to just enjoy being near her, listening to her breathe, watching the soft rise and fall of her chest.

Sesshomaru gazed at Kikyo while she slept. There was a lovely hint of peace on her angelic face. Her head was on his chest, using him as pillow, which he did not mind in the slightest. He would not mind if she always used him as pillow. She also had her hand on his chest and he could not help comparing their skin color to each other.

They were two different types of pale, he noted. He was a ghostly color, like a phantom while she was more a creamy pale, almost like milk. Still, they were still a nearly white pair, which amused him ever so slightly; it would amuse her later on when she noted it, too.

He put his arm, which she rested on, around her shoulders. He lightly caressed her bicep, trying to avoid waking her, but wanting to feel her silky skin under his fingertips. He could easily become addicted to touching her. _She’s so lovely and she’s mine_. He lied there, content, stoking her arm until she began to stir.

Kikyo was only half-awake when she began moving against Sesshomaru. Why was she so comfortable? Why was her pillow so much better than usual? Why was she so much warmer than usual? She opened her eyes to find out.

For an incoherent moment, Kikyo did not know who she was against and she became a bit frightened. Sesshomaru could tell because of her scent and he could hear her heartbeat change. He tightened his grip on her a bit to assure her everything was all right. She looked up at him, eyes hazy, but they cleared up as she gazed at him.

“Morning,” he greeted her in his usual tone. He felt lighter looking into her eyes. It was something… bizarre. A good bizarre.

“Sesshomaru,” Kikyo said as if she expected someone else to be there.

“Yes,” he replied. He considered she might have expected him to have left her sometime through the night. After all, she was a married woman, so she more than likely would not think a man who was not her husband would spend the night with her. He would spend every night with her if he could. He would like to spend time helping her understand he meant what he said last night as well. He had no intentions of skulking off during the night ever.

“What time is it?” she asked as she glanced over only to discover she was not facing the clock as she usually would. He glanced over to the other side of the bed to answer her question. 

“A little after nine,” he replied.

“So late,” she commented, holding in a yawn as best she could.

“Late?” he echoed. For him, it would have been late if it was a work day, but on a weekend when he had no obligations, there was no such thing as late. He woke whenever he did and spent the day as he pleased.

“I tend to wake up early to leave early,” she answered.

“Why? Where do you go?” he asked. She did not have work, after all. What did she do with her time? 

“There is plenty to do in this great city of ours. I find new things. I would rather be out of here before he wakes up,” she explained.

“He? Your mean your husband,” he clarified. He did not care if she brought the man up because that lowly worm did not compare to him.

“Yes,” she answered. 

“When is he returning?” he asked. It made sense she would not want to be around him. If only she were not so taken in by her vows, she would be done with her husband. She was too noble for her own good, but he adored her for it.

“Tomorrow afternoon,” she replied. She would rather not think about it and enjoy her time without him. Adding Sesshomaru to the mix and she could get used to this.

“Why did he go on this trip?” the dog demon inquired.

“I think he is attempting to get his partner at work fired,” Kikyo answered. She had not been paying much attention when Naraku started his rant, or the rants that followed since he had gotten the idea so early in the week. She also did not know Sesshomaru was the man he was looking to get fired. 

Sesshomaru’s eyebrow ticked upward for a brief moment. “Is he?” Did that half-breed bastard really think it was so easy to get rid of him?

Kikyo shrugged a bit. “I believe that is what he is looking to do. He wants to speak with the clients directly and change their minds on having him work with a partner. He doesn’t seem to be getting along with his partner, which is hardly surprising.”

Sesshomaru nodded slightly. He was not too worried about this news. Better men had tried to destroy him. His only concern was the petite body against him. He would use the free time with her while he had it and did not have to care a thing about a certain half-breed.

“Sounds like a charming fellow,” the nobleman remarked, snorting lightly.

“Quite,” she concurred.

Sesshomaru let the conversation drop because it was obvious she did not want to talk about it. He did not want to talk about it either. He had other things in mind now that she was awake. He moved his free hand, the one not around her shoulders, to under the sheet. He began caressing the inside of her slim thigh.

“Sessho…” she moaned quietly, legs shifting wider, memories of his fingers already pulsing through her. She was sore like she thought she would be, but more would be welcomed. His touch would always be welcomed.

Sesshomaru pulled Kikyo up a little so he could kiss her. She seemed a bit surprised by this, but she did not protest. She melted into him, kissing him the same as she did last night. She kissed him like he was hers. He did not mind. She felt like it was a dream and she did not want to wake up.

They were not going to have much time to themselves like they did now, so they needed to take advantage and they both knew that. They both agreed with that logic, as well. Although, Sesshomaru was making plans for them beyond the one weekend. Something like this had to live well beyond a weekend.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo sighed as she settled on top of Sesshomaru with her head tucked underneath his chin. He massaged her bare back and quietly enjoyed the feel of her naked body against his, especially her legs caressing his own as they were. They were both covered in a thin layer of sweat and Sesshomaru guessed his idea to take her out for breakfast was going to end up being their usual lunch date. He would not complain.

They were distracted from each other by the sound of a phone going off. It was on vibration mode, buzzing against the wood of the nightstand. It was Kikyo’s cell. She sat up a bit to look around for it, but Sesshomaru located it before her. He reached over to the stand that held the clock, a lamp, and her phone. He handed it to her.

“Thank you,” Kikyo said. He did not respond and went back to rubbing her back. She sighed and then answered the phone, knowing who it was. “Hello, big sister,” she greeted Midoriko. The call should have ruined the mood, but it was hard for anything to be ruined with Sesshomaru stroking her spine.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Midoriko sighed in relief.

“What’s wrong?” Kikyo asked, brow furrowing a bit.

“You never came by last night and you have not answered my calls. I was so worried about you,” the eldest sister replied. She had been plotting all sorts of torturous things if that hanyou scum had harmed her younger sister in any way.

“Oh…” Kikyo realized she had forgotten her sisters while she was out with Sesshomaru. Was that a bad thing? After all, she had forgotten her sisters to break her marriage vows, over and over and over again. This was beyond a bad thing, but why did it feel so good, so right?

“Oh? Is that it? What happened?” Midoriko inquired.

Kikyo was silent. She could not lie to her sister, but she could not tell her sister she had spent the night with Sesshomaru. She was in a bit of a spot, but she owed Midoriko something. She could imagine Midoriko going out of her mind last night with worry. Midoriko probably thought the worst and had Kikyo not answered this time, she could see her sister going off to murder Naraku, assuming he had done the same to Kikyo.

“I merely forgot to come to your apartment last night,” the middle sister answered. It was not a lie. She forgot a lot of things once Sesshomaru kissed her.

“In favor of?” Midoriko asked.

“Tea with a friend,” she replied.

Midoriko was silent now. She knew this was not the whole story and she could tell would not get it. She was not sure why, though. What could have happened Kikyo did not want to tell her about? If it had anything to do with that bastard Kikyo was married to, Midoriko would slay him. She was going to press the issue with the hope of getting more than what Kikyo was offering, but the middle sister beat her to speaking.

“Big sister, everything is fine and I have to get to something. I will call you back later,” Kikyo said and she disconnected the call before Midoriko could answer. She breathed a sigh of relief and dropped her head back onto Sesshomaru’s chest.

“Are you all right?” the dog demon inquired, his fingers dancing along her spine.

“I am. I just did not want to lie to my sister,” she explained. She also did not want to give her sister a chance to ask too many questions.

“All right. So, would you like to go out for some lunch?” he offered.

“I would prefer to take a shower before that,” she commented.

“Well, that, too. Now that you mention it, would you mind if we stopped by my apartment and then we went to lunch?” he proposed.

“All right,” she agreed.

Sesshomaru was reluctant to let Kikyo get out of bed, but he let her go. He watched as she wrapped a sheet around her nude body, which he thought was a bit amusing. She was a modest little thing, which he expected. He would like to break her of her modesty when she was around him. She did not have to hide from him. He appreciated every bit of her and he needed her to understand that. He supposed that would take time. He would not mind.

While Kikyo went to take a shower, Sesshomaru went to grab his cell phone. He checked to see if he had any messages. His sister might have been looking for him like her sister had been looking for her. He was right to check. Rin was practically cheering on his voicemail. Rin had a habit of always sounding like she was cheering about something. His stepmother thought it was adorable while Sesshomaru did not know what to make of it, but accepted it because it was Rin.

“Hey, big brother, just wondering where you are?” she chirped over her first message. He could hear the smile in her voice. One would have been enough, but this was Rin. She was not done with just one. She had another requesting he allow her to stay over his apartment for the weekend. She liked staying at his apartment because it was close to a skate park where she and her friends liked going to get wounded as far as he could tell. He knew whenever she returned from the place, she always sported at least three cuts. He decided to call her back and let her know it probably would not be a good time for her to come over that weekend. 

“Hello, big brother!” Rin greeted him. Once again, he could hear the smile in her voice.

“Hello, Rin,” he replied.

“I was just about to call you again. So, can I come over to your house? Can I? Can I? Can I?” she asked. He guessed she had had a lot of sugar already, which meant she was either out of the house or with Inuyasha.

“This weekend isn’t a very good time,” Sesshomaru answered. 

“Why?” Rin pretty much howled into the phone. 

“I have work to do,” he informed her. He was not lying, technically. He had work to do with Kikyo, making her understand she had made the right decision in breaking her wedding vows and being with him. He had work to do in making her feel like the angel he believed she was.

“Aw,” the twelve-year-old groaned. “When can I come over then?”

“I don’t know,” he replied. He now had to figure out his life with Kikyo in it before he could have his sister wander in and out of his apartment like she was used to doing. 

“Well, when are you gonna be done with your work?” she asked.

“I’m not sure,” he answered. 

“What about if I help? I could help! Oh, lemme help,” she offered and he knew she was grinning from ear to ear. Her enthusiasm was appreciated and she had been helpful in the past, but obviously she could not do anything here.

“At the moment, I don’t need help, but you will be the first person I call if I do need it,” he assured her. 

“Okay!” she cheered and he heard her clap her hands. “Oh, big brother, I gotta go! My friends are here.” He could hear their excited chatter in the background.

“Of course.” Sesshomaru let her go, not bothered by her hanging up without bidding him farewell. He laughed a bit to himself. Rin certainly was lively and her energy seemed to suck people in. He did not understand how her friends kept up with her, unless her friends were like her, which he doubted. He believed Rin was one of a kind. She had to be the only human on the planet who thought she was a demon, after all.

With a sigh, Sesshomaru rubbed his palm over the bed, thinking about last night and this morning. He did not want to get up, but time moved forward and he had to do the same. With strength he was shocked he possessed, he yanked himself out of the comfort of the bed and gathered up his clothing to get dressed. His eyes drifted to the bed as he put each article of clothing on. Maybe he did not want to go out for lunch.

In less than an hour, he would have Kikyo in his home and he could have her in his bed. They could order out. He was not sure if Kikyo would go for that. He was not even sure if he wanted that. Spending time with Kikyo at lunch was always amazing, but being at home with her could be equally so. He would see what he felt like doing once they got to his apartment.

While he was searching for his tie, he came across a book hidden under the bed. He would have left it alone, but he could see it was a sketchbook. He guessed it was Kikyo’s book because she was into art and he knew her husband was not intelligent enough to appreciate art. He flipped the book open and noticed the soft pencil sketches. He saw the signature at the bottom corner and that confirmed it was her book.

He moved on to the next page and found a picture he suspected she did while she was on the subway because it was a sketch of people sitting on the train. She had a surprisingly sharp style with dark edges over light curves. She was into detail from what he could tell, which was something he looked into when he sketched. There were bits of the sketches that had much more work on them than others, like focusing on the eyes or every shadow on the nose. He continued on looking through the pieces.

“What’s that you have there?” Kikyo inquired as she reentered the room, now fully dressed. Yes, she had taken her clothes with her into the bathroom rather than get dressed in front of Sesshomaru.

“Your sketchbook,” he answered as if it was no big deal and he did not think it was.

“No, don’t look,” Kikyo groaned. She never showed her sketches to people. She was not very proud of her sketch work, mostly because it was all unfinished.

“Why? I like what you have here. It looks like you smug your work sometimes, but other than that it is fine work,” he commented.

“I forget to pick my hand up on occasion,” she explained about the smears he saw. She accidentally moved her hand over her lines. It was more noticeable when she worked in ink because with pencil, she could erase such mistakes.

“What kind of classes did you attend?” he inquired, continuing to go through the book.

“I didn’t beyond high school,” she answered. Art for her had always been a hobby and she did it on her own when she had the time.

His only response was, “hmm.” It was hard to believe someone with such skill and a clear technique was not trained.

Kikyo sat down next to him and tried to take the book from him, but he would not give it up. She would not give up either and he held her at bay with one hand while still looking through the book. She practically climbed on him trying to get it back, but to no avail. He noticed something as he came to her hand sketches.

“You’re left-handed?” he asked. Many of her hand sketches were of her right hand.

“If I answer that, will I get my book back?” she countered.

“It might help make a difference,” he replied, but the spark in his eyes told her the truth.

“I can work with both hands, but practiced more with my left because for a long time it was the weaker hand. Now, may I please just have my book back?” she requested while reaching out for the sketchbook.

“No,” he answered rather bluntly.

She expected that and tried to take the book once more. She failed. “Please.”

He glanced at her. “I just said no.”

“There’s nothing in there for you to see,” she said. She reached for it once more, but she knew she would not get it back until Sesshomaru was ready. If this was anyone else, she would have destroyed them already, but it felt fine to let him see. Maybe it was because she had appreciated art with him and trusted him to take in her art with a fair eye.

He sucked his teeth, as if scolding her. “There’s plenty for me to see. Do you have other sketchbooks or is this the only one?”

“That’s it,” she answered. She used to have more, but they mysteriously vanished one day after she argued with Naraku back at their own home. He never admitted to doing anything to the books, but when she asked him about it, he said art was useless anyway, so she did not need those books. After that, she had other sketchbooks, but they did not make it back here with her.

“Really? I have stacks,” he informed her. He still had every sketchbook he used in life, except for the ones his mother refused to give to him, wanting “something to remember him by,” as if he were dead. 

“And do you just like anyone looking through your sketchbooks?” she asked with an arched eyebrow.

Sesshomaru glanced at her. “On occasion I do allow certain people to see them. It depends.”

“On?” she pressed. He was so difficult. 

“It just depends. Since you’re ready, we can depart,” he said.

“Can I have my book back?” she requested once again.

“No.”

Sesshomaru kept the sketchbook in his possession and then stood up. Kikyo looked at him in disbelief, but she could tell that she would not get that book back until he was done with it. Well, at least he did not make fun of her work. A certain half-breed would have thrown the book out if he had come across it, as he had done with others like it, but she would rather not think about him. Sesshomaru was nothing like him.

“You should have more,” Sesshomaru commented as they went to the front door. 

“I would like to have that one back,” she stated.

“Eventually.” 

The pair left the house and Kikyo could only hope she did not have nosy neighbors. She really did not know the people in the building that well. They did not seem particularly friendly, but they also seemed to mind their business because of that. She supposed she was safe, relatively speaking, as long as Naraku was like she was and he did not speak to anyone in the building either because she was certain someone was going to see her with Sesshomaru. She was willing to bet someone saw him go in her apartment last night, too. They did not discuss it, though. 

They drove the short distance to Sesshomaru’s building. He lived ten minutes away from her. She could walk to his apartment if the urge ever came over her. The urge had better overcome her, he thought. Well, actually, he would prefer the urge for her to call him and inform him she wanted to come over took her over because he would not want her walking alone, even in a safe part of the city. He would drive to her and take her anywhere she wanted to, especially if it was to his place.

Sesshomaru parked in his designed spot and then took Kikyo up to his apartment. His apartment was huge; it might as well have been a house, she thought. He left her to look around. He went to his bedroom and made sure to take the sketchbook with him. She noticed her book went with him, but she did not say anything. It was probably safest with him.

Kikyo was not sure if she should wander around the apartment. She was not very comfortable with the idea. Well, she was not very comfortable with being in the place at all. It seemed so… sneaky. It felt like she was doing something wrong, but she would rather be wrong with Sesshomaru if she was being wrong.

“I’ve been wrong through all of this and it still feels right,” she told herself. It felt more right than ever.

She decided to tour the area as best she could from where she stood. She glanced to her left she saw his kitchen, which was about two and half times the size of her kitchen. His countertops were black marble design as was the floor and the cupboard doors. The cupboards themselves were white. The refrigerator was onyx as was his stove. He had a pair of stools, which were black and sitting at the counter around the kitchen that closed it off from the rest of the apartment.

She then looked into the living room, which was sunken. He had a flat screen television on the wall with a black stand that held a DVD player, a gaming console, and a cable box. There were some DVDs on the stand, which she would not expect in his possession. They were cartoons and they belonged to Rin, but she did not know that. He had a semi-circular couch, which was also black.

She was a bit surprised by all of the black that was in Sesshomaru’s home. She had been under the impression he was partial to white considering all of his suits were white. Perhaps, he only enjoyed the shade when it came to his outfits. 

She did not see much more of his apartment. She could see there was another big room after the living room, but it was positioned to the left, so she could not look into it. She remained where she was rather than exploring the other room. She glanced toward the hallway to see if Sesshomaru was coming back, but she did not see any sign of him. Soon, she heard the sound of running water, so she guessed he was taking a shower.

“Who knows how long that will take. How would it look for me to stand here the whole time?” she asked herself. 

She took a few steps further into the apartment and noticed he had a couple of pictures about the place. They were of one little girl who looked rather familiar to her. Taking a closer look, she realized she knew the girl. There was one picture where she was quite young and missing her two front teeth, which Kikyo supposed was always a favorite. She had dozens of pictures of Kaede when she was toothless and Midoriko had dozens of her when she was toothless. Then the other picture was the girl graduating, probably from elementary and it was from that picture Kikyo knew the little girl. Rin was in the picture with Kaede.

“It is a small world,” Kikyo muttered.

“Admiring my little sister?” Sesshomaru inquired as he joined her in his living room.

“Does she mind that you have this picture of her out?” Kikyo countered, pointing to the toothless picture.

“She’s stolen it on more than one occasion, but she will never outsmart me,” he answered.

Kikyo chuckled a little. “I wonder if she thought of that or if Kaede talked her into doing it,” she commented, mostly to herself. Kaede tended to steal pictures of herself that she did not like, too. She turned her attention to him. “Where is my book?” she inquired, noting he did not have it with him. Had he hid it?

Sesshomaru only gave her a half-smirk as an answer. She did not seem to like that much and turned her attention directly to him, giving him a hard glare. She wanted her sketchbook back. He looked over her. He would give her back the book when he was done with it and not a moment before.

“You can be imposing. I’m sure many have quivered in your wake,” he commented. The tough glower on her visage impressed him, but he was not moved. 

Kikyo seemed to get the idea and decided to stop thinking about her book for the moment. It was not like Sesshomaru was going to damage it. She then noticed his clothes and he certainly did not look like he was ready to go out to lunch. He wore a plain white tee-shirt and white pants she knew he would never go outside in.

“I thought we were going out to lunch,” the petite woman said. 

“About that, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind staying in with me. We could order in and relax together,” Sesshomaru offered. He could wrap her in his arms as they sat on the couch. He could hold her close, breath in her scent, and kiss her whenever he desired.

Kikyo thought on the proposal while Sesshomaru could not believe he had just given an option. He usually did what he wanted to do and he wanted to stay in, to enjoy having Kikyo to himself, but he was going to let her decide what they would do. It might have been the first time he had ever done something like that.

The slender woman considered it might be nice to stay in with Sesshomaru. How many times would she get such an opportunity? Maybe for a day she could pretend all was right in her world. She could see what it was like to relax with a male who would not find it necessary to start an argument with her, or would not try to demean her for existing. 

“I think I would like that,” Kikyo said.

“All right,” he replied. 

Sesshomaru could feel a smile curling onto his lips and rushed off before it had a chance to fully form. He went to make the call for lunch, but then he realized he did not know what she wanted. It would seem he would give her a choice again. 

“Is there any type of food you would like in particular?” he asked.

“No, it does not matter.” 

“Would you like me to order for you?”

“You know my taste.”

He certainly did know her taste, in more ways than one. While he placed the order, he told her to make herself comfortable since she was still standing around. She shyly made her to the sofa and sat down. He watched her and shook his head. He would have to make her feel at home in his apartment. 

Once he was done with ordering their lunch, he walked over to Kikyo. He sat down on the sofa and took her into his arms. She yelped in surprise, not expecting him to grab her. She was not used to such actions point blank and was not sure what to make of this.

“Don’t be so stiff,” he said and then he nuzzled her neck, hoping to relax her. 

“Perhaps, if you gave me back my book,” she replied while willing herself to be calm. She liked being in his arms, after all, so there was no reason for her to be so guarded. It was hard to fight against her instincts, but she would try. 

“I am not giving you back that book until I see all of your sketches,” he informed her.

“Well, are you going to show me your sketches in return?” she inquired. 

“Maybe,” he replied and then he offered up something for them to do before she could huff about his answer, which she was going to do. “Would you like to listen to some music? Or perhaps watch something on television?” he proposed.

“Watch what?” she asked.

“I’m not very sure. Most of the things for the television are for my little sister,” he told her.

“Does she spend a lot of time here?”

“Yes. It serves as a good base of operation for her to link up with her insane friends as they go find new ways to injure themselves,” he answered.

Kikyo laughed a bit and nodded. She understood what he meant exactly now that she knew who his sister was. If her memory served her correctly, Rin was a wild, little spark plug. Typically when Kaede came in with some kind of wound, it was because Rin had a so-called brilliant idea. If Kaede came in without an injury, it usually meant she had the brilliant idea and Rin was probably the one with the scars to prove it.

Sesshomaru released Kikyo for the moment to see if he had anything worth watching. He usually did not watch much television, preferring to paint if he had any spare time. Well, preferring to try to paint. Although, lately, his muse had returned and he managed some quality work. He located a few DVDs he had purchased a while ago. Rin had stuck them in the back of everything else since she did not watch them.

He put on a movie and then went back to cuddling Kikyo in his strong arms. They remained like that until he had to answer the door for their lunch. They ate lunch and stayed on the couch, snuggled up. Occasionally, he would sneak a kiss to her cheek, neck, or lips. There was little conversation, but the atmosphere remained comfortable, warm. They both silently decided it was something they could get used to. It seemed like the way that things should be.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Naraku returns and things try to go back to normal. They really try, but normal doesn’t seem to work anymore.


	8. Ceasefire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

8: Ceasefire

Sesshomaru groaned as he was taken from his sleep because of some light movement against him. His mind wondered what his woman thought she was doing because she had to be the cause of the movement. She was probably an early-riser. He could tell she was not trying to adjust to get more comfortable. It seemed that she was getting up, so he opened his eyes to check on her. 

“Kikyo, what are you doing?” he inquired. Did she not understand the weekend was for sleeping in?

“I’m sorry, Sessho. I didn’t mean to wake you,” Kikyo apologized. She understood he enjoyed his sleep and he looked so peaceful lying there.

“That doesn’t explain what you’re doing,” he pointed out.

“I was going to get up and go home,” she answered. She had to go home eventually.

He groaned, low and deep in his chest. “And how were you going to go about that?”

“I was going to walk.”

There was another, longer groan from him. Who did she think he was? There was no way he would let his angel do something alone when he could help. “You’re not walking home. I’ll drive you. Why are you getting up so early, though?” He recalled she said her husband was not going to be in until the afternoon and it was the early morning at the moment. She did not need to leave just yet, so they did not need to be awake.

“I was going to clean the apartment,” she replied.

Kikyo planned to get home early to erase or at least dull the evidence Sesshomaru had been in the apartment. While Naraku might not smell what they had done, he would sense Sesshomaru there. She was not sure how Naraku would react to the knowledge of a demon male being in the apartment and she would rather not find out.

She would have taken care of those things before, but she ended up spending the night at Sesshomaru’s house. It had been quite a night and she doubted she would ever forget it. She would not mind having more such nights and he was in agreement with that thinking. She was not sure how that would be possible, though. It was not often Naraku left her for a few days to live her life.

“All right. I’ll drive you home,” Sesshomaru said, running his hand up and down her leg. He did not want to leave this spot, though.

Kikyo nodded, but she had little desire to leave the bed either. Her body throbbed as his fingers slid across her calf to her thigh. How did he have such an affect on her? She did not know, did not care, and merely wanted more.

They lay there for several long moments. She enjoyed listening to his heartbeat against her ear, feeling him breathe against her. This was peace. A rare and precious gift. What she would give to be able to wake up like this everyday, but life had taught her not to be greedy. She luxuriated in the moment, drank it all in, and then pushed away from Sesshomaru. He let out a low huff, but followed her lead.

The pair got out bed. They dressed silently, slowly and reluctantly. Kikyo went to the bathroom to put her clothes on and by the time she came out Sesshomaru was only halfway dressed. The walk down to the car involved more silence and took several minutes, but they remained close enough to touch, Kikyo leaning into Sesshomaru, who had his hand on the small of her back. Even in the car, they rested their hands on the middle console enough for their skin to touch without actually holding hands.

“Thank you,” Kikyo said as they pulled up to her building.

Sesshomaru leveled her look, which said it all. He walked Kikyo to her apartment. She put a little distance between them until they stepped inside. He had no plans to linger, knowing she needed as much time as she could to prepare for her husband.

“This weekend was unforgettable,” he told her and then he kissed her sweetly as a farewell.

She smiled a little. “Yes, it was.”

“Be sure to call me whenever you have a spare moment,” he instructed her. She agreed to that and was then alone again.

The petite woman sighed and looked around the apartment. She really did not want to be there. She wanted to go back to Sesshomaru’s apartment and lie next to him for the rest of the day. She had never felt so comfortable with a man before. Even when Naraku was lying to her and acting like someone he was not, she was not nearly as at ease with him as she was with Sesshomaru. Being with the dog demon felt so right and she wanted to be with him as much as she could.

“But, how?” she wondered aloud. Her brain offered no solution to that problem.

Kikyo decided to stop thinking about it and she got to work on cleaning. The first thing she would have to do was wash the bed spread. Naraku did not often share the bed with her. She suspected he feared she might purify him in his sleep. It was not a completely outrageous assumption on his part considering how upset she sometimes got with him and he often made it a mission to send her to bed in a fury.

She took a deep breath as she stripped the bed, trying not to think about what it witnessed a day ago. Her body tingled at the memory. She shook it off, gathered the rest of her laundry, and went to take care of that in the building’s laundry. While the washing machine went, she returned upstairs to get to the rest of the apartment.

She pretty much cleaned everything and made sure that she used cleaning fluid with a powerful bleach smell. Naraku, like anyone with demon blood, had a stronger sense of smell than humans, but only certain kind of demons had extremely powerful senses of smell. So, she would be able to mask the scent of Sesshomaru to Naraku and everything should be fine… well, everything should be as it usually was anyway. It was never fine when the hanyou was involved.

By the time Naraku came in, Kikyo had the apartment in a presentable order. She planned to go to the bedroom to avoid him and do some sketching, but she realized Sesshomaru still had her book. She had nothing to distract her from her half-demon husband now. Part of her could not help thinking this was a punishment for not being able to spend more time with Sesshomaru, but he could not know how terrible her husband was.

“Kikyo,” Naraku greeted her as he entered their home. He looked around as if he suspected something, she noted, but she figured it was really nothing. It was possible he was trying to make her nervous.

“Yes?” Kikyo replied from the sofa.

“Don’t you want to know how my trip went?” he inquired.

“Not really,” she answered. He wanted to boast about whatever foul thing he did and she did not have time for that.

Naraku frowned and he ground his teeth for a moment. She guessed his trip did not go as planned. If it had, he would have started going on about it as soon as he stepped through the door. It probably not been completely horrible, though, or he would have came in ranting, raving, and seething over it. She could not figure out how it went and she did not want to. But, she figured since she was home, he would tell her all about it because he liked having an audience, even if the audience was not listening.

“Do you know what these fools had the nerve to say? They didn’t think my arguments were sound and they wanted to keep that dog bastard on the team. They want him to design a logo and they want us to come up with a decent ad. _Together_. They wouldn’t listen to reason and they didn’t care that mutt wasn’t doing anything. They ordered — can you believe that? _Ordered_ — we come up with something to show them within the week or they were going to take their account somewhere else,” Naraku explained.

“Well, then, I suppose you two should get to work,” she commented. The only reason he probably had not broken things in the apartment over the whole thing was because he knew it could have gone so much worse.

Naraku did not see any humor in that remark and growled. He stalked over to Kikyo and loomed over her, eyes ablaze. He was trying to intimidate her and she held in laughter. He grabbed her shoulder and pushed her down into the sofa to make sure she could not get up. Her nerves itched, begging to get him off of her in a way that would teach him the best. But, she was not quite there yet.

They eyed each other. She dared him to do something with her cocoa gaze. He really wanted to take her up on that challenge, but held off. He was not as stupid as he sometimes acted.

“You should be a more supportive wife,” he informed her, smirking as if he was in control of the situation. 

“You should be a more supportive husband,” she countered. Of course, she knew that would never happen.

“I am supportive. Aren’t I the one bringing in the money?” he inquired with a cruel smirk.

Kikyo was tempted to slap him, if only for him to understand he could not walk all over her like he desired. She wanted so badly to go find work, but he had threatened to get her fired and that was not an idle threat. She could not chance him doing something that might keep her from gaining employment ever again. She was not sure what he might do, but she knew it would be sinister. Something she would not be able to come back from. So, she would wait, bide her time until she was certain his threat would be meaningless to her. She was patient if nothing else. 

“Unhand me,” Kikyo commanded her husband, steel in her voice, letting him understand she would not tell him a second time.

“Why? You should be more open to my touch,” Naraku replied, trying to move a hand to touch her cheek. She moved her head and he missed. 

“Don’t touch me,” she ordered him a calm, but deadly tone. After she had spent the weekend in Sesshomaru’s arms, she would vomit if she felt Naraku touch her skin. Of course, she had not been much of a fan of her husband touching her ever since she found out what he was really like.

“A husband should be allowed to touch his wife,” the hanyou commented, voice low with command.

“Do it and you shall pull back a blackened stump,” she promised him. 

Naraku laughed in that deep, wicked tone he probably had a patent on. Kikyo did not look amused and her lip curled with outright disgust as her husband leaned in. It seemed he was going to kiss her. She could not remember the last time he even tried, but there was no way he would succeed. She panicked on the inside and pushed him away from her. He was caught by surprise and fell back a couple of feet. 

“I said don’t touch me,” Kikyo stated in a firm tone.

“You are full of energy,” Naraku commented with a twinkle in his eyes as if he was amused by what happened.

“I’m going out,” Kikyo declared. She needed to get away from him already. She did not know where she would go, but it had to be somewhere far from him. He seemed to want to push her buttons until she had to act against him and she did not want to do that. 

“Really? You don’t want to spend some time with your darling husband after I’ve come home from a long trip?” he asked in a mocking tone, rolling his eyes. 

“I’m going out,” she repeated and she stood up. She took a step toward the door, but he grabbed her by the arm. He pulled her to him.

He stared down at her, fire in his eyes. “We should spend time together, dear wife.” 

“Let go of me,” she practically growled at him, as much as her voice could become a growl.

Naraku thought on the request for a moment and then flung her away from him. Kikyo nearly hit the front wall, but she caught her balance first. She glared at him and decided he was not even worth her time. She had better things to do and friendlier people to be around.

The pale woman exited the apartment and went out into the street. She started walking and pulled out her cell phone. Who should she call? It was a toss up between her big sister and Sesshomaru. Neither would be pleasant conversations because she was going to have to explain why she called more than likely. She called Sesshomaru.

“Yes, Kikyo?” he answered the call.

“Um… Sessho… do you suppose I could come back to your apartment for a little while?” Her voice was almost shy, unsure. She felt like she was intruding in his life, even though she had just been at his apartment that morning.

“All right,” he easily agreed. He had been silently wishing she was with him ever since he dropped her off. “Where are you now? I’ll come and pick you up.”

“I’m walking toward your building right now,” she answered. Internally, she sighed in relief, glad he did not seem to want to know her reasoning for wanting to come back.

“Oh,” he groaned.

“Should I not be doing that?” she asked because of the noise.

“I’m not home at the moment. I decided to run a few errands after I dropped you off. How close are you to my home right now?”

“Well, I just left my apartment.”

“All right. I can be at you in about two minutes. Just wait for me,” he told her.

“All right.”

Kikyo waited for him and the dog demon was true to his word; he was at her in under two minutes. He did want to know why she was returning to him so soon, not that he was complaining. It struck him as odd she would leave home not even an hour after her husband was supposed to be home. He could guess why she left. Who would want to be around that hanyou for long? He wanted to be sure her husband had not done more than annoyed her.

“Is everything all right?” he asked.

“I just needed to get out,” Kikyo said.

“Kikyo, if he hurt you, I want you to tell me,” Sesshomaru stated. If that bastard hanyou did anything that even misplaced a hair on his angel’s head, he would behead that crimson-eyed pest with his own claws and it would not keep him up at night.

Sesshomaru considered he might have been better off not knowing who Kikyo was married to. Now, he would look for any excuse to knock that silly bastard around, slam him through a wall, and maybe even end him. He was angry that a complete and utter ass like that moron half-breed managed to trick Kikyo into marrying him.

“He didn’t hurt me. He was just being irksome, as he usually is,” Kikyo assured the nobleman.

Sesshomaru nodded and decided to believe her words, even though that was too much for him, too. Now, just because he believed her did not mean he trusted her bastard husband. After all, he knew who she was married to and he was willing to bet that the hanyou was slimier than he could imagine. After experiencing the bastard at work, he could not fathom what he was like at home to a woman who did not want to be with him.

“Perhaps you could give me my sketchbook while we’re there,” Kikyo said.

“We shall see,” he replied.

The couple went back to Sesshomaru’s apartment and relaxed there. Kikyo waited for the sketchbook, but it eventually left her mind as they settled on the couch and discussed classical painting techniques. He had dinner delivered to them while they cuddled on the sofa and watched a movie. He returned Kikyo to her apartment close to midnight and she did not explain her whereabouts to her husband when he asked.

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru went to work that Monday and there was no outward change in his appearance to let anyone know how good he actually felt. He had never felt so… he was not even sure how to describe it. He felt lighter than air, as if there was a cloud inside of him. He felt great, even though he always thought he felt great since he was just that. His current feeling was different than usual and he hoped the feeling remained. It was like being inebriated, but in a light, clean manner.

He knew his weekend with Kikyo was the reason he felt the way he did. He did not try to rationalize that. The reasoning was not important. He looked forward to seeing her again, to being with her again, to keeping this light inside of him. If only he could keep her with him at all times, take her home every day, sleep next to her and with her whenever the urge overcame him, hold her in his arms whenever he wanted, and so many other things.

He already considered telling her to leave her husband. It was rather soon to tell her such a thing, but he felt it needed to be said already. They had not known each other for too long and he suspected she would not go for such a thing so soon. She was a cautious little creature. He would hold off for a while to let her see it was safe to be with him and she needed to get away from Naraku.

“We have work to do,” the half-breed stated as he barged into the officer.

 _Speak of the devil_ , Sesshomaru thought. “Indeed we do,” he concurred. He guessed the foolish half-demon did not have a great deal of success getting him taken off of the account. He did not think it would work. His work was above reproach typically. Most clients would give him the benefit of the doubt if they requested him on an account.

“Then I suggest a truce,” Naraku said.

Sesshomaru did not even change his facial expression to the words. He desired to cut off Naraku’s head and not because he dared to try to get Sesshomaru thrown off the account. How dare the detestable half-breed trick Kikyo into marrying him? How dare this bastard think he was worthy of Kikyo? Sesshomaru’s inner demon raged and demanded Naraku’s blood. _He better never touch Kikyo, in pleasure or pain_. If the half-breed tried anything with Kikyo, then Sesshomaru sate his inner demon and take the bastard’s head.

“I suggest you do your part and I do mine,” Sesshomaru stated, even though that had not worked for them yet. He wanted the half-demon out of his office before his inner demon took control. The demon noble was pretty much the embodiment of self-control, but he was willing to lose that for Kikyo.

Naraku conceded that, if only to get away from Sesshomaru. If they both did their parts and did it to the best of their ability, surely they could get the account out of the way and they would not have to bother with each other anymore. Naraku stormed out of the office, making noise, as if throwing a tantrum or somehow grandstanding for their coworkers. Whatever the case, Sesshomaru glad to be alone.

“He’s not keeping her,” Sesshomaru promised himself.

The dog demon could not possibly live with himself if he did not take his woman where she needed to be, namely with him. She did not deserve to be around some insane, manipulative, immature half-demon, who she did not even want to touch her. Naraku deserved her in any way, so he would not feel guilty when he finally got through to Kikyo. The challenge there would be to get Kikyo to understand it was not honorable to live in misery and suffering because of her word.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo reminded herself to act normal as she went to meet up with Midoriko. They were having lunch together. Kaede would not be joining them because she was back at school. Kikyo took calming breaths as she made her way to the café and she tried her best not to think of what she had done with Sesshomaru on Saturday. Sure, she had spent Sunday with him, too, but Saturday was not right for lack of a better phrase.

Saturday was not wild by the dog demon’s standards, but for Kikyo, it was just about the wildest day she had ever had. She was not used to passion in general and yet, that night with Sesshomaru had been ridiculous as far as she was concerned. She had to make sure not to think about it or she might zone out on her sister or something worse. She had to make sure not to make her big sister suspicious because even though Midoriko hated Naraku, there was no way she would approve of Kikyo having an affair with Sesshomaru.

“Kikyo,” Midoriko called and the middle sister waved from a few feet down the street.

“Hello, sister,” Kikyo greeted her elder sibling as she took a seat with her at the table.

“It’s good to see that you didn’t forget about our lunch date considering your state this weekend,” Midoriko remarked.

“I am truly sorry for that,” the younger woman apologized and she bowed her head slightly.

Midoriko waved it off. “It’s all right. I had just been so worried about you. It’s not like you to say you’ll see us and then you don’t show up, especially without word. I was cursing that damned hanyou’s name and plotting the worst sort of death for him and even that was too good for him.”

Kikyo only nodded once because she should have guessed that would happen. She had been too busy with Sesshomaru to think of much beyond him, though. She felt a bit guilty for forsaking her sisters to lie underneath Sesshomaru Friday night and practically all of Saturday. She suspected her elder sister would be extremely upset with her if she ever found out, not just about the lustful behavior, but the affair altogether. Midoriko had the same sense of honor as she did.

“How goes the job search?” Midoriko inquired.

Kikyo exhaled slowly. She did not want to tell her big sister what Naraku threatened to do if she ever did find a job considering the elder female would probably pump him so full of spiritual energy that she would burn herself out. _If only it was not considered murder nowadays_ , she would do it herself. Of course, if it were not considered murder today, she probably would have slain Naraku long ago.

“I haven’t really been looking,” the middle sister admitted.

“You’ve been getting distracted by all of the art museums, I’ll bet. I know a gentleman who is a doctor and he has a small practice. I’m sure he would like the help,” Midoriko informed Kikyo.

“No, you don’t need to find me work. I am an adult now. I shouldn’t depend on you for every little thing,” Kikyo objected. The last thing she needed was for Naraku to embarrass her at an office with someone her sister knew. She did not want to upset Midoriko’s reputation.

Midoriko blew out a breath. “Nonsense. I am your older sister. I should look out for you if I can.”

“No, it’s fine. I can do it on my own,” Kikyo insisted.

Midoriko decided to drop the debate for a moment. She studied her sister for a second and noticed something about the younger female. Kikyo seemed to be glowing. It was the first time she had ever witnessed such a thing. It was beyond the typical happiness Kikyo used to express before she had gotten married to that scum-sucking hanyou.

Now, Kikyo had never been one those people who was outwardly happy or unhappy. Every now and then, she could be caught smiling or laughing like any other person, but a great deal of the time, she looked like she was containing herself. At the moment, it looked like she was trying to maintain control of that ability remain aloof and contained.

“Is something wrong, big sister?” Kikyo inquired as she noticed Midoriko studying her. Her stomach flipped a little, nervous as to why her sister found her so fascinating.

“No, there’s nothing wrong. There’s just something different about you,” Midoriko answered, squinting a bit as she regarded Kikyo.

Kikyo arched an eyebrow. “Something different about me?”

“Yes.”

Kikyo wondered if she had slipped up. She had not even thought about Sesshomaru, though. How could she have allowed anything to slip when she had been paying her sister her total attention? It did not make any sense.

“It’s good to see you happy,” Midoriko commented and Kikyo was taken aback by that.

Kikyo did not have a way to respond, but she did not need one. Her sister changed the subject and did not bring up Kikyo’s obvious mood or ask the reason behind it. That was a relief.

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru sat on his sofa, massaging his temples. He really needed an idea of some kind for the account to get Naraku out of his life. He had not been able to come up with a single good logo for their clients or visual advertisement of any kind. None of his graphics worked for anything, but it was hard to match graphics when he did not know what that damned half-demon was doing. He worked through lunch since Kikyo had been hanging out with her elder sister, so his day was full of Naraku until he could make it home.

Naraku was not assisting matters by not coming up with anything to help. The half-breed actually wanted things to be over as badly as the demon prince, which they had agreed on earlier. The easiest and fastest way to never have to see each other again was to come up with something for the account and then insist the clients never bother them again with that teamwork nonsense. If they wanted to work with a team, they would play sports, they both agreed.

Sesshomaru hated to think how many lunch hours he might have to share with Naraku, even if the hanyou was not in the area. They both agreed to work until they had this done. So far, Sesshomaru lost on four lunches.

Sesshomaru just wanted one good idea to get rid Naraku and to give him back his lunch hour, so he could be with his angel. He was pleased she at least called him every day they did not see each other. She assured him she was fine, which he always wanted to know. He would feel better if he could _confirm_ she was fine since she shared a home with that half-demon bastard. Kikyo would simply endure whatever Naraku wanted to put her through without saying anything to avoid troubling Sesshomaru.

He would feel better and be able to think more clearly if he could see Kikyo was all right. After all, how could he focus on work if his woman might not be as fine as she claimed to be? He managed to hold off for a while, but he decided to call her again, if only to relieve his stress. He made it home by the time he gave into this impulse. 

Now, he knew it was not a good idea for a male to phone a married female. There was always a chance her husband might answer the phone, but he would take that chance for the simple fact that Kikyo told him she never let her husband touch her cell phone. So, he grabbed his home phone and called her.

“Hello,” Kikyo said.

“Can you come over?” Sesshomaru inquired. She was the only person that he requested things of. He supposed it should be all right for her to come over with it being a weekend afternoon. The only thing that could possibly hold her back was the fact that she was probably with her sisters.

“Not right now,” she answered. 

“When?” he asked.

“In an hour.” 

“It’ll do.”

“All right,” she said and she disconnected the call. 

An hour later, Kikyo showed up as promised. He greeted her with a passionate kiss, giving her an idea how much she was missed, even though he would never admit to such a thing out loud. There were a lot of things about Kikyo he would not confess to out loud.

“How did you get here?” Sesshomaru inquired, hand on her cheek, reveling in her softness. 

“I took the bus,” she answered.

“You know you should call me,” he stated. He never wanted her on the bus or train again. Anything could happen on public transportation.

“I would have, but I was already outside and you were here. I don’t mind taking the bus, Sessho,” she informed him. It was how she got around all the time. 

“I would prefer you not doing that, though.”

She tilted her head slightly. “Why?”

Sesshomaru acted as if he did not hear the question. He could not explain to her that he worried about her, especially when it came to her being outside on her own. He did not trust public transportation in the slightest, between the fact that any and everyone could be there to the crowds to the unpredictable nature of it. He did not even let his little sister ride such things unless she assured him that she was in a group. 

“How was your week, Sessho?” Kikyo asked, changing the subject. She could tell he was concerned without him having to say it and she did not want him to stress.

“Hell,” he admitted, putting his arm around her waist and leading her to the sofa.

She slid onto the couch and pressed herself against his steady form. She could feel the tension in his body. “Is there anything that I can do to help?” 

Sesshomaru only smirked and began another kiss. He almost sighed in relief in being able to hold her, touch her, and kiss her. Not only was she all right, but he could finally relax. He did not have to worry about something happening to her or that fool hanyou hurting her. All was right in the world as far as he was concerned.

“What would you like for dinner?” Sesshomaru inquired after Kikyo had been in the apartment for a couple of hours. 

She thought on it. “How about I cook you dinner?” she offered.

“Really?” he asked.

“Yes. Do you have something here for me to prepare or do I have to go shopping?” 

“I should have something. On occasion, I do cook,” he answered.

“Well, then, allow me,” she proposed. She had a feeling he would appreciate this, unlike her husband.

Before Sesshomaru could say anything, Kikyo picked herself up and went to the kitchen. He watched her work. It was not the first time that a woman cooked for him, but it certainly was the first time he was flattered by the move. It seemed like everything Kikyo did, he enjoyed, even if someone else had done it before and he had not cared. Kikyo was special. 

Sesshomaru silently admitted to himself Kikyo gave him some strange feeling he had never experienced before. He did not know what the feeling was, but he knew it made him concerned for her and it made him feel content when she was around. He wished she could stay forever, especially when he tasted the meal that she prepared.

“This is amazing,” he said after a forkful of dinner. 

Kikyo smiled and shrugged, happy he was pleased. She was actually a great cook. She did not have much practice at it anymore, but she used to do it most of the time when she lived with her sisters. She was glad to do it for Sesshomaru for some reason she did not bother with considering at the moment. She was happy to sit with him and enjoy a meal.

Sesshomaru was pleased with getting to spend the day with Kikyo and he would have preferred she could stay the night at least, but he knew it would be best to get her home as the night drew on. He drove her back to her apartment and then went back home. The second he set foot in his apartment, he had a brilliant idea for the account. He knew spending time with Kikyo would be helpful. 

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Sesshomaru and Kikyo actually go on vacation together.


	9. Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

9: Magic 

Sesshomaru went into work fairly confident he would not have to see Naraku anymore. He had an excellent idea for what they should do and even if the irksome hanyou debated it with him, he would still present it to their clients because he was sure they would approve of his plan. He would never have to suffer through Naraku again. It was going to be a great day and it took all of his self-control to not celebrate already. There was also the fact that he would be free tomorrow to spend some time with Kikyo. It had been far too long without seeing her in the afternoon. 

The dog demon felt better than he had in a long time about going to work thanks to his idea. He went to his office and nearly smiled. He dared to wonder if this was how being giddy felt. He always assumed anyone who was visibly giddy or happy was an idiot, but something about the emotion flowing through him helped him understand those people a little more. He waited for the inevitable, namely for Naraku to come in and harass him. He did not have to wait long, barely setting himself up for the day before his door was shoved open.

“Tell me you have something, mutt,” the half-demon practically snarled. He typically was never in a good mood, but his mood completely soured when he entered the office. Sesshomaru’s very existence upset his universe. It did not help at home Kikyo seemed to slip further and further from his grasp. Once everything was settled, he would do something about Kikyo and then work on doing something about the arrogant dog.

“Look who’s talking about being a mutt,” Sesshomaru commented with a curl to his upper lip. “I do have something, though.”

Naraku’s crimson eyes went wide and Sesshomaru did not give him a chance to get over his shock. He pitched his idea to Naraku with the hanyou standing there, mouth slightly agape. He could see that the half-demon was going to object before he even opened his mouth. The nobleman was not looking to have Naraku undermine his brilliance, so as soon as he finished speaking to the hayou, he picked up the phone to make a call.

“What are you doing?” Naraku demanded, glaring at Sesshomaru.

“Calling them,” Sesshomaru answered.

“You can’t call them. I don’t agree with that stupid idea. You can’t just put yourself in charge and make decisions for both of us,” Naraku declared.

Sesshomaru only graced the half-breed with a glance. He made the call and informed the clients what he thought of doing with their account. He then put them on speakerphone for Naraku to hear their opinion on the subject. The half-demon’s face practically fell to the floor as the clients expressed joy with what the dog demon came up with. Sesshomaru hung up when the clients were done. They informed the partners they wanted a visual presentation drawn up for next week when they would come by the office and hammer out the specific details.

“There, it’s done. You do your part and I do mine and you might be able to live through the week,” Sesshomaru commented.

“Just make sure you do your part, mutt,” Naraku huffed. He glared at Sesshomaru with a new sort of hatred, gnashing his teeth like it was a threat. “Don’t make us look worse than you have.”

Sesshomaru did not respond, even with the obvious to point out what an idiot Naraku was. Of course, he would do his part of his idea. He eyed Naraku until the half-demon wisely exited his office. He went into his desk and pulled out a sketchpad he kept in his office. He had a tablet to draw on the computer, but always preferred working with paper before anything else. He needed get to work right away and get everything out of the way. Then, he would have time to be with Kikyo.

“What has this woman done to me?” Sesshomaru wondered as he realized Kikyo was the only person he wanted to get to. It was not like he wanted to spend time with his little sister, who was really the only person he usually gave his attention to for a prolonged period of time. Now, he just wanted to be with that strange, little human woman.

The platinum-haired male shrugged it off. He wanted what he wanted and there was nothing wrong with that. He did not question his desire, not after acknowledging Kikyo was special. He was perfect and he deserved whatever he wanted, just like he got whatever he wanted. It was that simple to him.

He wanted Kikyo and though he had her in some way, he wanted her to be totally his in every sense of the word. He wanted her away from that damnable half-breed, for her own good as well as for his desire. The thought tore at his brain and he ached for not being able to be there for her. He wanted to protect her, take care of her the way she deserved, and have her always by his side.

He shook his head, trying to rid himself of such thoughts. “It’s much too early in our relationship — if this can even be called that — for me to be thinking so permanently.” While his head knew this, other parts of him refused to comply. His head was not much help as it refused to let go of the idea of his angel.

Thinking about Kikyo, Sesshomaru picked up his phone and decided to find out what she was doing. He called her from his cell phone and had to wait a few rings before she answered. He nearly smiled from the sound of her voice and all she did was answer the phone.

“Hello, Sessho,” Kikyo said.

His heart thumped at the sound of his name. He was not sure when she decided to shorten it, but he did not mind. He imagined the name tasted good in her mouth. And that thought made him think of her taste and he had to shake his head to focus on speaking to her. “Good day, Kikyo. Where are you right now?”

“I’m at home,” she answered.

“That is odd. I figured you would be cruising some museum somewhere while waiting for noon to come along to have lunch with your sister,” he commented. After all, that used to be her days for the first couple of weeks he knew her.

“I sometimes enjoy this place when he’s gone. It is rather cozy.” It would not be a bad home if she had it on her own.

“And here it is I thought you preferred my place.”

Kikyo chuckled, low in her throat, and only for a moment. “I do, but I do not have open access to it as I do here. So, to what do I owe the honor of such an early call from you?”

“I was just curious. I was thinking of you.” He was always thinking of her. Would it be like that if he was able to see her more often? If he was able to call her whenever he desired? If he could invite her to his home whenever the urge overcame him? _I should give her keys_. He was not sure she would appreciate or accept keys to his place, though.

“Oh, how delightful. Don’t you have work that you should be doing?” she inquired, a slight lilt in her voice. She was teasing him.

“I am doing it now, but I’m talking to you, too. So, talk to me,” he ordered in a gentle tone. The sound of her voice, the flow of her ideas would only help him work.

Kikyo laughed a bit again, but she continued talking to him. She was flattered he would call her just to call her. It was sweet. She was not sure if anyone ever thought to call her just to talk and he seemed quite content to hear about her day, as uneventful as it was.

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru and Naraku worked through their project and put together what they had. They were going to make the presentation to the clients and then they would never have to see each other ever again. Everything went smoothly and it ended with the clients being very satisfied with what they had received. The pair made it clear they would not do another such project again. With a grin, their boss told them he did not make any promises.

Sesshomaru did not say anything, but eventually he would openly state to Totosai he would never work with Naraku again to make sure the bug-eyed old coot never did something like this again. For now, he packed up his things from the presentation while mentally patting himself on the back for solving this issue. If asked, he would not even take full credit for it. No, he would not credit Naraku with much, but he would definitely give praise to Kikyo for being a good muse.

With the presentation out of the way and the clients pleased, Sesshomaru decided to celebrate the fact that he would not have to spend any more time with Naraku. He called Kikyo and informed her that he was taking her out to dinner that night. She did not object, but he was not done there. He would wait until they were face to face to run the other idea by her.

Sesshomaru picked Kikyo up after work from her apartment. He knew Naraku did not go straight home, especially when he was sulking over the fact that the clients he brought in liked Sesshomaru’s idea, so it was all right to go to the apartment. His beautiful angel was not prepared for dinner, but that was all right. He was there earlier than he told her. She had her outfit in her arms, but she wore her house clothes, which was a plain white long-sleeve t-shirt and baggy sweat pants.

Sesshomaru’s breath hitched in his chest. The clothing stunned him, as he was used to seeing her in a business casual style. She looked rather attractive in such plain clothing. _Damn dinner_ , his inner demon commented. He resisted the urge to tear her out of her outfit, but his inner demon clawed at him just under the surface of his calm facade. _You should just take her right then and there_. He controlled himself and stuck to his plan.

“Sessho,” Kikyo said because of the tense look on his face.

The nobleman cleared his throated to snap himself out of the daze. “Well, why aren’t you dressed?” he inquired. It was almost snappish, but not quite there. She did not take offense to his tone.

“I thought it would be a bit early for dinner, but if we’re leaving immediately, I can go get dressed now,” she replied, patting the clothes in her arms.

“No, you make a point.” They had time and that was a good thing. “I should change, anyway. So, we can go to my apartment for a couple of hours and then we can go to dinner. About what time should I get you back here?” he asked.

“The same time as always,” she answered.

Sesshomaru nodded and Kikyo went to change. Once she was done, they went off to his apartment for a while. Kikyo sighed softly as they crossed the threshold. Sesshomaru liked the sound, liked how her shoulders relaxed. He wanted her to be at ease in his place. He wanted the apartment to feel like her space as much as it was his.

“Ready to give me my sketchbook back?” Kikyo asked.

Sesshomaru scoffed. “I’m going to take a shower. Sit.” He motioned to the couch.

“You will return my book to me.”

He waved that off. The book was in his possession and he would give it back when he was good and ready. “Maybe if you find it.” He left on that note.

Kikyo rolled her eyes. She was tempted to search for the book, but knowing Sesshomaru, it was in his bedroom. She was not quite comfortable with the idea of rifling through his bedroom with him in the shower, even if he taunted her over her sketchbook. She made herself busy looking through his bookshelf and grabbed an art collection book to pass the time.

As she was reading the history of one of the portraits, Sesshomaru returned and joined her on the sofa. He did not say anything, gathering her in his arms until she was snug against his chest. She moved the book, so he had clear sight of the page.

“This is a favorite.” He pointed down at the page.

“It looks grandiose, like so much demon art,” she said.

“It’s an experience in person. The paints individually bring to mind a vibrant spring, but put together…” He shook his head. In person, the painting was a jumble of things, like much of demon art and he found it difficult to describe for her to get the full idea without actually being in front of it.

“I haven’t seen it.”

“One day I will take you.”

She did not doubt him. They flipped through the book, occasionally talking about pieces, but also enjoying the silence. By the time they had to leave, they were reluctant to pull away from each other, but they managed. They sat down in a rather exclusive restaurant, which might have been a surprise for Kikyo weeks ago. She had come to expect such things from the dog demon. It was not that Sesshomaru was showing off his wealth. He was just used to the finer things that life had to offer.

“This is more than I’m used to, even with you,” Kikyo commented. The restaurant was swankier than usual and she felt a little underdressed, as there were eyes on her.

“It’s a celebration,” Sesshomaru replied as he pulled out her chair for her.

She regarded him with a tilt of her head as she sat down. “Is it? For what?”

“I closed my account today. I don’t have to work with that bastard of a partner I had. I feel like a weight has been lifted off of me and I want to enjoy my newly acquired freedom,” he explained, sitting across from her.

“I’m glad for you,” she said.

“Yes, so I was thinking of taking a vacation.” 

“Oh,” she muttered and glanced away. She was not sure what to say. He would be gone for who knew how long and she did not really like that thought. She did not want to be without him for an undetermined amount of time. 

“I want you join me,” he added.

She blinked. “Join you?” she echoed. It was like she did not understand what he meant.

“Yes, join me. I believe you deserve some time away from home. We could fly far away.” He reached across the table. He took her small hand in his and massaged her hand with his thumb. “We could travel the world and see all of the art that you wish. We could see so much and also make love in every city on Earth.” Something inside of him fluttered at the thought.

Kikyo smiled softly. “That latter part suits you best, hmm?” she taunted him.

“Indeed, but you know very well how I feel about seeing art with you, hearing your thoughts. I will take you anywhere you wish to go. We will do anything you wish to do. So, what do you say?” he inquired. He doubted she would turn him down. He really did not care where they went or what they did. He had already seen a great deal of the world and had done most of the things he wanted to do. All that was left was to do everything again, but with Kikyo there. He had the one strong desire of making love to her on every city on Earth, so he figured they needed to get started.

“I would love to go with you, but it would be a bit difficult to explain my disappearance for a long amount of time,” she replied. She did have a husband to worry about. He would make inquiries if she vanished without his involvement.

“I can see your point. Your sisters wouldn’t cover for you?” he asked.

“Well, I doubt they would approve of me going with you all over the world to make love in every city on Earth,” she remarked. Again, she had a husband.

“I can see your point yet again.”

“They don’t know about us, anyway,” Kikyo admitted.

“No?” Well, his family did not know about her, but it was more because he was not in contact with his family in the same manner as she was with hers. “That’s all right. I can see why you wouldn’t say anything about us. Consider the offer, angel. I won’t make any plans until I hear from you.”

Kikyo nodded and she thought on it throughout dinner. It was a very tempting offer. She would love to do just about anything with Sesshomaru where she could be outside with him and hold onto him as if he was her husband. It would be a great thing, but how could she get away with such a thing?

She could not up and leave for a week or more. First of all, her sisters would worry about her, even if she called them everyday. They might even suspect something and go after Naraku. She did not want to cause that kind of trouble.

Even without causing the trouble, how could she come up with an excuse to leave the city for a week or longer than that? She thought on it and thought on it hard. She really wanted an excuse to be able to leave with Sesshomaru. She wanted to be with him uninterrupted, pretend, wish, or even more. The funny thing was that Naraku would offer her the chance for that.

One day, Kikyo found Naraku in the apartment bedroom, packing a bag. She craned a curious, elegant ebony eyebrow. She had to ask.

“What are you doing?” the pale woman inquired.

“I have to go on a business trip,” he answered.

“A business trip?” she echoed. This was the first she heard of it. It must not be part of a scheme to take down his partner then. What was he up to?

“Yes,” he said in a clipped tone. He had a plan working in his mind now that he was established at his firm and he wanted to get to it. He would earn his deserved fortune and gain all the power that he wanted starting with his trip to set things up.

“For how long?” she asked.

“I don’t know. A week or two,” he answered.

Kikyo practically squealed on the inside. She could not believe what the thought of being with Sesshomaru was doing to her. She made sure to remain composed while Naraku continued to pack. She did not know where he was going and she did not care. She did not care what he had planned, even though she knew she should. When he kept a scheme close to the vest, it was not something to be taken lightly, but he could do plot to his heart’s content as far as she was concerned right now. She was going to go with Sesshomaru wherever she wanted to and be with him without having to worry about anything for a week or more. The very idea made her want to giggle and she had to bit her lip to stop.

-8-8-8-8-

Sesshomaru smiled as Kikyo informed him of her free week, or more of they were lucky. She did not know where she wanted to spend that free week, but she did not really care. He was still very much in favor of a vacation.

“We can go wherever you want,” he stated as they sat for lunch. He reached over the table, taking her hand. Neither of them cared about being in public. It was not likely her sisters would be there and Naraku could not afford this place.

“I actually would not mind staying in the city, as long as I can be with you,” she replied. She tried to fight down a smile, needing to contain herself.

His well-tuned ears could hear her ebullience as she tried to keep her usual tone. Her eyes looked like they were lined with pixie dust. The sight and sound did strange things to his chest, which he did not mind.

“Then, we shall be together until the very last moment,” he replied.

Sesshomaru decided on where to take Kikyo. He also decided to call someone to trail Naraku. He wanted to know how long the damned half-demon would be gone precisely. As long as he knew how long the fool hanyou was going to be gone, he knew how long he could keep Kikyo out of the city and enjoy having her to himself. He did not care what so-called business that repulsive half-breed was handling, but his hired shadow might report on it.

The day after Naraku left, Sesshomaru and Kikyo were on a plane headed overseas. It was time to start his desire and her dream. For the trip with his limited knowledge for the moment, he made plans for them to stay in two cities, but if they had more time, he had plans for other cities.

When they landed, Kikyo was asleep. Sesshomaru did not bother with waking her and collected her in his arms. He carried her off of the plane along with their bags. She woke up briefly, in a daze, but he told her to go back to sleep and she did not fight him on that. He had a car waiting for them outside the airport and the driver was aware of the hotel to go to. Sesshomaru held Kikyo throughout the ride with her cuddled into his chest. When they arrived at their destination, he carried her into the lobby of their hotel. He continued to hold her in his arms while checking in.

“That is sweet of you, sir,” the desk clerk commented when she saw Sesshomaru holding Kikyo.

Sesshomaru did not respond. He did not want to sit there and talk to a hotel employee about anything. The clerk did not take the hint.

“You don’t get many husbands who would rather carry their wives than wake them. She’s lucky to have you,” the clerk said.

Sesshomaru’s face twitched when the clerk referred to Kikyo as his wife; he nearly smiled. A warm feeling spread through his body and settled in any empty spaces. He decided not to be so rude to the clerk now and let her talk. He even thanked her as she gave him the keycard to his room. He made sure to keep good hold on Kikyo as he went up to their suite while the hotel staff brought up their bags. When he was in the room, he eased Kikyo down on the bed and stared at her.

“My wife,” Sesshomaru whispered as he gently caressed her cheek. His fingers traveled to her neck. “My mate,” he stated.

She was his. He would get her away from that bastard hanyou if it was the last thing that he did. He had to wait, he knew, but it made his teeth itch a little. He wanted her to be his and his alone, right now, forever and always, and he would have her come Hell or high water.

Sesshomaru stopped thinking about it and settled down next to Kikyo. He held her close and fell sleep. When they rose, they were going to be busy.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo had both of her arms wrapped around Sesshomaru’s limb as they strolled through the halls of a world famous art museum. She seemed so happy, he noted, even though one could not tell from the look on her face. It was the way she held his arm, in a firm, secure grip, but she occasionally ran her fingers across his bicep or tapped against his elbow.

Sesshomaru half-focused on the art around them and half-focused on the males around the place. He noticed more men than he liked eyeing Kikyo. Well, one was too many in his opinion. He supposed he should expect as much. After all, he had a beautiful woman on his arm. But, he was possessive of that woman. She was his and that was that. His attention was drawn to Kikyo when he heard her sigh deeply.

“Is something wrong?” he asked.

“No, I just… I can’t believe I’m here with you. Thank you so much,” she answered.

“Don’t thank me over it. Enjoy the moment,” he said. He would. He would enjoy and cherish the entire trip.

“I would enjoy the moment much more if you were willing to give me more than a few words of conversation.” She gave him a little smirk.

He chuckled slightly. “You have my full attention.”

“I’m sure I do. I’m with you and this is a dream come true.”

He almost smiled, understanding what she meant. He did not have to eye any other males. She was there with him. She was happy with him. “Then I will try to offer more conversation and I want you to keep enjoying this.”

Kikyo enjoyed the museum. She really could not believe she was overseas, in a famous museum, viewing paintings that she had only seen photos of with the demon that she was had strong feelings for. She would not say she was falling in love, as that was too deep in her opinion, but there was something growing between them.

Sesshomaru would agree with her. Love was not an emotion he would admit to or even consider. He understood and accepted he felt something powerful and deep for her. He accepted that he wanted to be with her, claim her as his own, but he would not for a second ever say he loved her.

In his opinion, love was an emotion for sentimental fools who allowed someone else to control them. He would never allow an emotion or a person control his actions. He was the great Sesshomaru, after all. He was never going to be in love with a person. Well, that was what he told himself.

“What shall we do after this?” he inquired after several hours wandering the vast museum.

“I don’t know. This is rather overwhelming,” she confessed.

Sesshomaru smiled a bit. He was enjoying his vacation so far just from watching how awed Kikyo was. They continued to cruise the museum until they came to an exit and then they had lunch. Kikyo enjoyed the native flavors and delighted in the meal. To top the evening off before returning to their hotel room, they caught a play. For Kikyo, it was like a dream.

“Sessho, I doubt I could ever thank you enough for this one day, so I don’t know what I’m going to do about the rest of the week,” Kikyo commented as they stepped off the hotel elevator.

“I’m sure we’ll come up with something,” he replied with an almost lecherous smirk and he placed his hands on her hips as she opened the door to their suite.

“I’m starting to think you only want me for one thing,” she teased him as they entered the room. When she had first woken up and saw where they were staying, it had shocked her. Their suite looked like something out of a movie.

“I do,” he informed her.

“And what is that one thing?” she asked him, turning around to face him and hooking her arms around his neck. He kept his hands on her hips and occasionally let them wander further behind her.

“You,” he answered in a whisper and he leaned down to steal a small kiss.

“Me?” she asked as if she was skeptical.

“Yes, you,” he repeated his words and his actions.

“Interesting,” she said. She wanted to believe him.

“I’ll bet,” he muttered. He was not looking to hold a conversation at the moment.

Sesshomaru claimed Kikyo’s mouth with his own in a passionate kiss. She met him with her own zeal. She silently admitted she never wanted a male like she wanted him. Yes, she was still modest to certain extent, but she always tried to meet his desire with her own, meet his fire with her own. There was nothing wrong with that, she told herself. They were adults, after all.

The dog demon hardly thought at all when it came to road they were traveling. He only had one thing on his mind and focused everything on that. He began unbuttoning Kikyo’s shirt as he slowly moved them both toward the bed. Although, he could care less than nothing if they made it to the bed or not.

She hissed as his hands came in contact with her skin. He caressed her ribs for a moment or so and then pushed her shirt from her shoulders. He then moved his hands from her ribs to her more fleshy parts. She was like a work of art, he thought.

“So perfect,” he whispered against her lips as he removed her bra.

He meant that. She was perfect. Everything about her was perfect from her body to her mind. That was why she was his, because she was perfect and he would tell her every single day if she let him.

“Kikyo,” he said. 

“Hmm?” she made a noise while leaning in for another kiss, but she was denied.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“Hmm?” she repeated the noise because she was confused on what he was asking and she really just wanted another hot kiss. 

“What do you want?” he inquired once more.

“What do you mean?” she countered while trying once again for her kiss, but he was not complying at the moment. 

“What do you want? We both know what I want, so what do you want?” he said.

Kikyo understood what he wanted. He desired for her to admit to wanting him, even if it was very obvious from the way that she was behaving. She supposed she could do that. He did it quite often.

“You,” she answered the obvious. She wanted him, to be with him, and to spend time with him in any way they could. She wanted to connect with him on every level possible.

“Then you shall have me,” he stated.

Sesshomaru leaned down to give Kikyo the burning, but loving kiss she needed. She could feel such emotion in his kiss that her knees went weak. The fact that he was caressing her breasts might have helped in that happening. He gently massaged her skin, being very careful of his claws to make sure he did not accidentally cut her. She did not even think about his talons whenever he touched her because he was so tender when he did it. 

“You’re so beautiful,” he said, kissing her cheek and down her neck. She whimpered as he stepped away and the sound hit him below the belt.

Sesshomaru worked himself out of his shirt while going in for another kiss, keeping her attention. Once he was free of his shirt, he pulled her closer to him to feel her skin against his skin. He groaned deep in his throat as their bodies melted together and she moved against him a little. She wrapped her arms around him again and rubbed his back. She was a lot less shy now than when they had first begun their little affair, he noted. 

Sesshomaru’s hands wandered down to her pants and unfastened those with practiced ease. He did not let her step out of the pants, but picked her up once the buttons were undone. He carried her to the bed and put her down on the soft, satin sheets. He then removed her pants with such swiftness that one might have thought he ripped the trousers off, but no, the cloth remained intact.

“There are no words,” he muttered, drinking in her form.

He was certain he would never get sick of the sight before him, Kikyo completely bare to him, _for_ him. He sometimes saw the image at work when he closed his eyes to blink. There were other odd things, like he could feel her on his fingertips even when she was not around. He could taste her on the tip of his tongue when he was alone and had not seen her all day. It was bizarre, but he did not care. She could invade his mind all she wanted. Hell, he welcomed it. He obviously did not count that as her having some sort of power over him.

Kikyo could understand his predicament. At all hours of the day, she could feel him touching her, kissing her, caressing her. It was an odd thing and even though she enjoyed it, she tried to ignore it. She did not see why her body seemed to feel him when he was not around and she did not think that it was necessary.

Sesshomaru joined Kikyo down on the bed and they proceeded to do the one thing that he wanted to do while on vacation. They went through the night and well into morning. It felt so right when they were together; they could not explain it, but it just felt so completely and totally right when they were together. It was like they were made for each other.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the couple is found out. But, by whom?


	10. Let’s Roll

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters. 
> 
> A/N: this chapter earns that rating again.

 

10: Let’s Roll

Six cities in fourteen days. Kikyo’s head was still spinning from that trip. Sesshomaru had treated her like a queen throughout the whole thing. He made sure she got to see everything she wanted to see while they were in certain cities and he also took her to places he figured she would like, even though she had never heard of them. He bought her gifts, even though she did not want any. He showered her with attention without making her feel like she was drowning in it. There never seemed to be an ulterior motive, which she was not used to thanks to her husband.

Sesshomaru wanted to do everything he could for his chocolate-eyed angel. He wanted her to get used to the finer things in life. He would always treat her like the angel she was and he wanted her to understand that from their trip. He figured once she completely believed she was safe with him and that he was not just putting on a front, then she would be open to the idea of leaving her filthy, undeserving bastard husband. She would then be his completely and totally.

Through the trip, he got odd reports on Naraku’s movements from the person that he hired to trail the hanyou. He really just wanted to know when Naraku was heading back home, but his servant, a little toad demon named Jaken, called him about the fact that it seemed like Naraku was “being weird.” The half-demon visited several banks and it also looked like he was considering purchasing a large plot of land, possibly to have a house built from the different people he spoke to, according to Jaken.

Sesshomaru was only a bit interested in the news. Was Naraku planning on moving? He did not care about that, but he was curious if Kikyo would move with that half-breed bastard. He would not allow Naraku to take Kikyo away from him now. He would challenge that dirty, irksome wretch to a duel in the middle of street and slaughter the crimson-eyed annoyance before he let Naraku take Kikyo somewhere. But, he shook that thought away, as it was only a distraction from his time with Kikyo.

At the moment, the secret couple was on their way back to their lives. Kikyo was asleep on the plane again, leaning against the dog demon. He did not mind, delighting in any portion of her weight against him. He caressed her cheek, which helped to keep her relaxed and asleep. He planned to have her spend the night with him when they landed, even if Naraku was at her home. He was not ready to let her go and he doubted she was ready to go.

Sesshomaru did not want to wake Kikyo up when they landed. He wanted her to remain comfortable, so he grabbed the carryon bags and slung them over his shoulder. He then gathered her in his arms and proceeded to carry her off the plane. The other passengers were incredulous to this display, but Sesshomaru ignored them, knowing the many reasons they stared.

No one could believe a demon was with a human, first of all. Then, they could not believe any guy rather carry his woman rather than wake up her and make her walk. Women quickly turned to glare at their significant others and grumbled little things that Sesshomaru heard, but he paid the angry or envious murmurs no mind.

The dog demon had arranged for a car to pick them up and he carried Kikyo all the way to the car while the driver got their bags. He cradled Kikyo in the car and she curled into his chest. He was as close to smiling as he ever would be in public.

“Beautiful wife you got there, mister,” the driver commented.

“Just drive,” Sesshomaru commanded.

While he enjoyed having Kikyo referred to as his wife on vacation, they were back in the real world. He was not interested in hearing any compliments toward Kikyo from another male, not interested in reminders that she was not actually his. The driver did not seem to appreciate the order, or so the sudden frown on his face implied. Being a demon himself, the driver decided he was not going to allow anyone, even a patron, be rude to him. One could imagine it was hard for demons to keep service jobs because of their attitudes.

“Although, she is just a little human. Where’d you buy her? Maybe I can get one,” the driver remarked with a smirk.

The driver did not know who he was talking to. Sesshomaru was not only a demon male holding a human woman he cared deeply for, but he also had a little sister who was human. No, he held no love for the human race as a whole, but there were things he would not stand for. He disliked hearing any demon even joke about buying a human, which used to go on quite a bit in the past and still existed on the black market. All he could think about was if something like that happened to his little sister or one of her annoying little friends. He would end up killing everyone involved.

“Listen carefully, if you don’t want to paint the windshield with your blood and brains, you’ll drive the car and keep your mouth shut,” Sesshomaru warned the male while cracking his knuckles on one hand. He had plans to let his energy whip fly if the fool wanted to keep at it. The car could crash for all he cared. He would shield Kikyo with his body and feel satisfaction in knowing there was one less fool in the world.

The driver looked into the rear-view mirror and caught the serious glint in Sesshomaru’s golden eyes. Sesshomaru’s youki wafted off of him and the driver visibly tensed. He wisely did not open his mouth and focused on driving the car. The dog demon leaned back into the car and enjoyed holding on Kikyo.

The driver did not bother Sesshomaru for the rest of the trip. They arrived at his apartment complex and he had no problem taking Kikyo and the bags upstairs. He put the bags down by the door and carried her to his bed. He placed her down and that was when she woke up.

“Sessho?” Kikyo called out as he started toward the door, going to move their luggage to some place out of the way.

“Yes?” Sesshomaru replied and turned around to face his angel.

“Have we arrived already?” she asked, blinking away her sleep.

“Yes. We’re at my home. Go back to sleep.” He planned to settle in next to her in the bed in a moment.

She sat up. “What time is it?”

Sesshomaru glanced at his clock by the bed because he had not corrected the time on his watch yet. It was actually the afternoon. She was probably going to want to get up, he reasoned. She glanced over at the clock to see what time it was and she got out of the bed immediately.

“I probably should go home,” Kikyo said. She covered her mouth as delicate yawn escaped her as soon as she was finished talking.

“It’s all right. Your husband isn’t there yet,” Sesshomaru replied. 

She stared at him with an arched eyebrow. “How do you know?”

He let out a light scoff. “I just know. Would I steer you wrong, angel?” 

“No,” she easily answered.

“So, relax.” 

Kikyo nodded. “Sessho, where is my sketchbook?” After that vacation, art wanted to flow out of her like faucet. She needed to put something on paper immediately.

He regarded her with squinting eyes for a moment. “Why?”

“I would like to make use of it. Unless, you won’t even allot me that. Then, I might as well buy another one.” And possibly reevaluate her relationship with him. 

“That’s unnecessary.” 

“I think I would prefer to keep it here.”

He nodded. “I’ll get it for you.”

The dog demon left the bedroom as did Kikyo. She retreated to the sofa while Sesshomaru retrieved her book and one of his own. He handed her the sketchbook and sat down next to her. They began drawing. She worked with pen while he had a charcoal stick. They silently enjoyed each other’s company while just drawing together.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo was preparing to take a shower before going to bed, still at Sesshomaru’s apartment. She hoped Sesshomaru was correct about Naraku not being home yet. It was not that she was afraid of the half-demon, but she did not want to have to deal with him. There was also the fact that if she had to deal with him, he would actually be in the right.

She was the one having an affair, after all. She sighed. How had this become her life? She really did not want to travel down that road in her mind, partially because she knew she would come to the conclusion she did not mind this being her life. Yes, there were all sorts of moral issues in her life now, but at least she was content. At least, she was content when she was with Sesshomaru. And speaking of the nobleman, he stepped into the bathroom.

“Sessho, what are you doing?” Kikyo inquired, pulling her shirt closer to her body. She was being ridiculous, she knew, but it was instinct.

“I thought I might join you,” he replied.

Her brow furrowed as she stared at him. “Join me?”

“Yes, join you.”

“In the shower?” she asked in a puzzled tone. Why would he join her in the shower?

“Yes.”

Kikyo still did not seem to grasp what he meant. He thought that was one of the many endearing things about her, just how naïve she could be while being so intelligent and educated. He knew she would get it in a moment, especially since they had bathed together several times over the vacation. The only difference was those had been actual baths and now she was talking about taking a shower. Not to mention, they had planned those baths where as this was spontaneous.

“Why would you want to join me in a small space like the shower?” Kikyo asked.

Sesshomaru smirked. _Why indeed_. “I have my reasons.”

She did not argue with him and they had a rather hot shower in more ways than one. Kikyo found herself pressed against the tile, Sesshomaru’s mouth on hers. One of his hands palmed her breast as the other settled against her thigh, pulling her leg up to his hip. Her hands glided through his wet hair.

No words passed between them, but they were in sync, as they had been all vacation. They did not break the kiss and they had learned the best ways to touch each other already. Kikyo discovered Sesshomaru whimpered if she curled the hair at the nape of his neck around her fingers. When the embarrassing noise escaped him, he slipped his hand in between her legs as revenge. How would she like it when she was the one making humiliating sounds?

Kikyo’s breath hitch and she fell away from Sesshomaru’s sweet lips as his finger found her pleasure. She yanked him closer with the leg on his hip. She let out a whine while he groaned as their wet bodies pressed together.

“Sessho…” she purred, hips grinding against his hand as sparks sizzled through her.

“You feel so good,” he said.

She nodded for lack of a better thing to say. He smiled and put her other leg on his hip. She shivered in anticipation and whimpered. He understood the sound, lining up with her. She went in for a kiss to grant him permission and he swallowed a loud moan from her as he eased into her. He groaned as she surrounded him. Being connected to Kikyo, inside Kikyo, would never cease to be the most incredible thing ever.

“Oh, Sessho…” Kikyo cried out as he moved within her. She clutched his back, holding on for dear life as her world centered on him.

“I have you,” he vowed before his mouth found her neck. He wanted to mark her, not possessively, but for her to understand the pleasure his mouth could bring her here, as well as anywhere else on her body.

Kikyo’s breath hitched, but she did not say anything, just tried to pull him closer. He responded by moving faster and all too soon Kikyo pulsed around him. He could not resist the pull and gritted his teeth against her flesh as he climaxed right after her. She slumped against him, spent. He smiled as he caught his breath. 

“We were supposed to wash up,” she said, head resting on his shoulder.

“We still can,” he replied, even though it was somewhat pointless. He planned to have his way her at least once more before returning her home.

Kikyo sighed and somehow managed to wash them both while Sesshomaru busied himself kissing her cheeks, neck, and breasts throughout the shower. Things did not stop there. Sesshomaru did not allow his angel to touch the floor when the shower ended. After they toweled each other off, he lifted her up and carried her into his bedroom. They should have one last passionate night before he had to return her to a bastard who did not care about her at all and did not deserve her at all.

The couple was intimate with each other until the early morning. Kikyo fell asleep curled up very close to her paramour, head resting on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. He smiled to himself. Life was supposed to be something like this. Life really was supposed to be where she was his and he did not have to let her leave later on because she had to return to her husband. _One day_. Too bad today was not that day.

Sesshomaru wondered if he had offended some divine being he did not know about. It would explain why he had met the perfect woman, but she happened to be married to the most annoying and vile creature on the planet. Not to mention, she was also a human. It sounded pretty damn ironic to him. Something that could only be brought on by fate.

“In the end, we are fated to be together,” he muttered, fingers drifting across her bare shoulder. She made a noise in her sleep and cuddled closer.

-8-8-8-8-

Rin put her key in the door and turned the lock to be allowed access to the apartment. She put her keys back around her neck as she opened the door and stepped inside. She had made sure to shut the door as quietly as possible since her brother had sensitive ears. She took her low-cut sneakers off at the door and put her skates down beside her shoes. She looked around and was a bit shocked that the place was lifeless.

She suspected her brother had slept in since it was the weekend. It was something her brothers always did. She walked to the back first to go check and see if he might be doing some early morning painting, but he was not in his studio. He was probably still in the bed. She went to go wake him up, just to let him know she was going to be there for a while before heading off to the skate park.

She headed to the bedroom and cracked the door open. She poked her head inside the room and caught a glimpse of someone in the bed that was not her brother. She only got a brief look at the face and knew it was a woman. A very familiar looking woman. Before she could get a better look, her big brother blocked her view.

“Rin, what are you doing here so early?” Sesshomaru inquired as he stepped out of the room, forcing Rin to back up. He was dressed in plain white cotton pants and a sleeveless t-shirt.

“I’m meeting my friends at the skate park in an hour, so I thought I’d lounge around your apartment for a while. Who was that, big brother?” Rin shamelessly asked while pointing in the bedroom.

“None of your concern,” Sesshomaru answered in his usual tone, but it did not seem so cold when he was addressing Rin. He used to wonder how such a little human could make him seem so unlike himself. He used to even remind himself that she was not really his sister, as if that would help him regain his usual manner when she was around, but that never happened. Even when she was a baby, she had him wrapped around her little finger and he could not longer bother to care.

“I think I know her,” Rin said.

With a frown, he craned an eyebrow at her. “You think you know her?”

“I think so, but I didn’t get a good look at her,” the preteen answered.

“And you won’t get a good look at her,” he informed her. The quickest way for a secret to get out was when three people knew about it.

“Why not? I won’t make the same mistake as I did in front of your last girlfriend,” Rin vowed. It was not really a mistake she made in front of his last girlfriend. She had not liked that demoness much because the female was mean and uppity, so Rin mentioned Sesshomaru usually dated much prettier girls and started a world war as far as she could tell. Sesshomaru barely scolded her over it in the end, but he was not happy with her and she knew.

“You’re not going to meet her, Rin. Now, you may remain here until you have to meet your friends, but you will not make a lot of noise and you will eat something before you leave,” he commanded.

“Actually, I had breakfast at home. Mommy caught me running out of the house and forced me to eat,” she told him.

“Good. Now, be very quiet while you’re out here.” He wanted Kikyo to get as much rest as possible before returning to the stressful situation that was her home life.

“Yes, sir.” She grinned at him, giving him a mock salute.

Sesshomaru eyed her suspiciously for a moment before leaving her out in the apartment on her own. He returned to the bedroom and settled back down next to Kikyo. He figured she should be asleep until Rin left.

The only reason he did not want Rin to meet Kikyo was because he thought Rin would run home, telling the tale of how he had a new girlfriend. Their father would then make it his business to know as much about Kikyo as possible and he would find out she was married. His father would not take that news well and Sesshomaru would never hear the end of how disgraceful it was for him to chase a married woman.

Sesshomaru gathered Kikyo up in his arms to enjoy the feel of her against him. His father would not understand their relationship, not right now anyway. She was made for him and it was that simple. She just jumped the gun and got married before they got to meet each other. One day, the mistake would be corrected and all would be right in the world. Then, Rin could tell any and everyone about his girlfriend. 

Rin raided her brother’s refrigerator, thinking about the woman that was in his bed. She was certain she knew the woman, even though she had not gotten the best look at her face. But, as she thought about it, she doubted it was who she thought it was. The woman on her brain was married and she would never do anything remotely considered wrong. Still, it seemed like the woman that she was thinking.

“It couldn’t be,” she tried to assure herself.

The preteen watched some television before she got a text message on her cell phone asking where she was. She grabbed her skates and put them on. She put her sneakers over her shoulder and took off for the skate park that was up the street from her brother’s apartment.

“Hey, guys!” Rin greeted her friends with a huge grin on her face. 

The trio Rin hung out with looked up when they heard her jubilant voice. Two of them wondered how she could sound so chipper early in the morning, even though they did not mind the time. They just did not think it was appropriate to sound so happy. The third member of their group nearly matched Rin’s enthusiasm when he replied to her call.

“Hey, Rin!” Shippo replied with a monstrous smile on his face. 

Kaede and Kohaku only glanced at the fox demon. They figured his energy was brought by too much sugar in the morning while Rin’s energy came from who knew where. Their energy usually did not come until they fell off of a rail a few times.

“Why is it you live the closest to this place, but you’re always the last one here?” Kaede asked Rin in a teasing tone and the other girl just shrugged as a response.

Kaede and Rin had been best friends for forever as far as they were concerned. They really could not remember a time they were not friends. They tried to do everything together, which included rides to the hospital when they messed up on some tricks when they were on their in-line skates.

They both knew Kohaku because his sister was friends with Rin’s brother and Kaede’s cousin. Kohaku was a couple of years older than they were, but he hung out with them because he liked skating as much as they did. They all liked going to the park and jumping off of things with their blades. It was freeing in his opinion and they would agree with that.

They met Shippo in school a couple of years back when he was the new kid. He was more fascinated in watching them skate than actually doing any work himself, especially when he saw what happened when they fell. They typically laughed off any injuries, except for when they broke something and they did break quite a few bones. He did not see how they could laugh. He at least thought the girls would cry when they fell, but no, they were the main ones who laughed. Kohaku had a habit of being upset when he got injured, viewing it as a failure rather than worrying about pain from being hurt.

“Hey, Kaede,” Rin said.

“Yeah, what?” Kaede replied as she sat down to put on her skates.

“Is your sister still married?” Rin asked.

“Yeah,” Kaede answered and then she looked up at her best friend, face scrunched up. “Why would you ask that question?” It seemed like such a weird question.

“No, I just thought I saw her at my brother’s apartment, but if she’s still married, it couldn’t be her,” Rin answered. Well, mystery kind of solved. Now, she wondered who her brother’s new girlfriend was.

“Why not? Inuyasha and Kikyo know each other, so she might have been there,” Kaede commented.

“No, it wasn’t Inuyasha’s house. I went to Sesshomaru’s house and his girlfriend was there in the bed. I thought she looked a lot like Kikyo, but it couldn’t be Kikyo if she’s still married,” Rin explained and then dismissed it all with a wave of her hand. She was pretty sure she was mistaken in what she saw.

“Sesshomaru?” Kaede echoed. “Is he tall with silver hair?”

“Yeah.”

“Into art?”

“Yeah, he paints,” Rin answered. Her friends did not know her eldest brother too well because of his attitude toward humans. He did not want to know her friends, which was a little heartbreaking in the beginning, but she was used to it by now.

“Holy shit,” Kaede muttered as she was struck by a realization. Normally, she would never think to say such profane words, but the thought in her head was just too much. It required a forceful declaration.

“What?” her friends asked. They were all curious now, especially since Kaede had used foul language.

“It might have been Kikyo,” Kaede stated. She knew Kikyo had a demon friend and she had said his name a few times, but Kaede had never really listened because she was always going on about museums or art when she talked about him, but she was pretty sure his name was Sesshomaru.

“You’re kidding,” all three friends said. They had all met Kikyo. There was no way that she would do something like what Kaede was trying to tell them.

“Guys, I hope I am kidding,” Kaede said.

“There’s a way to find out,” Rin suggested.

“And what way is that?” Kohaku asked, knowing she had something mischievous in mind. Rin was always good for something that would get them in trouble at the least and killed at the most.

“We could go in the apartment when it’s empty and look around,” Rin proposed.

“You mean snoop around,” Kohaku corrected her.

“Brilliant idea!” Kaede agreed with her best friend. They gave each other a high-five.

“I don’t think this is a good idea, guys,” Shippo tried to object because he had heard tales of Rin’s eldest brother. He was not a very friendly demon and he doubted an unfriendly demon would like them going through his things. Shippo was ignored by the girls, who knew the fox demon was a coward and they knew Kohaku would go along with just about anything because he was a pretty laid-back guy.

“Lemme just find out when he’s going to be gone,” Rin said and she pulled out her phone, calling her eldest brother. “Hey, Sesshomaru, is it okay if I spend the night at your place? It’s a long weekend and me and my friends are probably going to spend it skating like crazy.”

“You are always welcome, Rin. I am not home, though,” Sesshomaru replied.

“Well, I’ve got a key and I’m not going right this second.”

“I’m not sure when I’ll be back in.”

Rin groaned. “I can take care of myself, Sesshomaru.”

“As long as taking care of yourself doesn’t involve destroying the apartment, I will be back sometime tonight.”

“I will not destroy the apartment,” she promised. “Bye.” She disconnected the call and turned her attention back to her clique. “Guys, we can go right now.”

“Let’s go,” Kaede suggested with wide, sneaky grin.

“Let’s hurry because he could come back at anytime,” Rin stated.

Kaede nodded and the best friends skated off in a hurry. Kohaku grabbed Shippo and followed behind the impulsive girls. Kohaku situated the little kitsune on his back as he tried to keep pace with the girls. He quietly noted he was going to have to work out more if he was going to have to carry Shippo every time Rin or Kaede got a “bright” idea. Shippo merely spent the time shivering, thinking about what might happen if Rin’s brother found them in his home.

It did not take them much time to get to Sesshomaru’s apartment. They almost got hit by several vehicles on the way there, though. Rin opened the door and motioned for her friends to wait outside. She went in to make sure the coast was clear. She took off her skates and quickly searched the house while calling for her big brother. It seemed it was safe for her friends to come in.

“All right guys, he’s not here. Come in and make sure you take your skates off at the door,” Rin instructed, waving them in.

The friends all nodded. They walked in as quietly as they possibly could, just in case, and took their skates off, or their shoes in Shippo’s case. They looked around the apartment and they could not help feeling as they owed Rin money just for letting them in the glorious place.

“Your brother is loaded, huh?” Shippo said as wide eyes took in the apartment.

Rin scoffed and waved the question off. “All right, let’s start looking,” she declared, clapping her hands together.

“Looking for what exactly?” Kohaku inquired.

“I dunno. Stuff you recognize from Kikyo,” Rin answered.

“And if we don’t find anything?” Kohaku asked.

“Well, we still had fun going through someone else’s stuff,” Rin replied with a laugh. Fun was fun.

Man, she could find a bright side to anything, Kohaku thought as he began to help them with their search. He thought they were wasting their time. He knew Kikyo as well as Rin did and he did not believe she would be seeing Sesshomaru while she was married. She was not that kind of woman.

“This is stupid,” Kohaku muttered, blowing a light raspberry as he moved through the living room. He really would rather be skating right now. He had moves he wanted to try out and everything. “You two owe me for this, especially if we don’t find anything,” he informed the two girls, wagging his finger at them.

“You’re so cranky in the morning,” Rin teased him.

Kohaku did not respond to that as he started his search in a bookcase. He doubted he would find anything there, even if there was evidence of Kikyo being in the house, which was why he picked that spot to look. He really did not feel like acting like he was some kind of private investigator.

Shippo was too frightened to touch anything, fiddling his fingers and looking around like he expected Sesshomaru to jump out of the walls. He knew that Sesshomaru, being a dog demon, would know they were in his home regardless of the fact if they were gone by the time he got there. He had a working nose, after all. The little fox demon wondered what was going to happen when Sesshomaru realized they were there and worse yet, when he realized they had been going through his things. 

“He’s going to kill us,” Shippo whimpered.

“Stop being such a baby, Shippo,” Kaede replied, going through items on the coffee table. 

Rin and Kaede could care less than nothing about what Sesshomaru was going to do when he found out that they were in his home. They rummaged through everything, curiosity dying to know if the woman Rin saw was indeed Kikyo. Rin had the eyes and Kaede had the information, so it might have actually been Kikyo.

Rin took the bedroom while Kaede went through the living room. They did not find anything worth much to them. Rin moved on to the bathroom in the bedroom and noticed there were two toothbrushes in there. She used the main bathroom when she stayed at the apartment, so she knew it was not her toothbrush. Hmm, it seemed whoever that was in the bed stayed over enough to need a toothbrush.

“Find anything?” Rin asked as she returned to the outside rooms. 

“Nothing,” the three friends answered.

“Hmm… where else is there to look?” Rin tapped her chin in thought.

The preteen girl looked at her best friend and it seemed like they were both struck by the same idea. Kaede asked about Sesshomaru’s art workshop and Rin pointed to where the room was. Both girls went in there and started going through whatever they could get their hands on. Rin found something interesting first. 

“These don’t look anything like his sketches,” Rin commented as she flipped through a sketchbook.

“Lemme see,” Kaede requested and Rin showed her best friend, who gasped. 

“What?” Rin inquired.

“That’s Kikyo’s sketchbook. She never lets it out of her sight,” Kaede answered.

Rin glanced back down at the drawing book and the only thing she could think was that Kikyo was a very talented artist. Well, that and Kikyo was cheating on her husband with Sesshomaru. Now they had evidence, it seemed like skating would have been a better idea because now they did not know what to do with such deep knowledge. Ignorance certainly was bliss. 

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Can these guys keep a secret?


	11. Silence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

11: Silence 

Rin and Kaede looked at each other in disbelief. They had just discovered Kikyo’s sketchbook in Sesshomaru’s apartment. Now, to most people that might not seem like much. It would only confirm Kikyo had been in Sesshomaru’s apartment at one point in time, but Kaede knew better. Finding her big sister’s sketchbook was like finding her underwear in the demon’s apartment. Hell, it might have been better if they found her underwear. They probably could explain undergarments better than her sketchbook being in the apartment. 

“Okay, okay, okay,” Kaede said, but she did not know what she wanted to state. How could this happen? This was supposed to just be stupid fun. Now, it was serious.

“Okay what? Kikyo is having an affair with Sesshomaru. Man, that would be so cool if she wasn’t married,” Rin realized in an absent tone.

“Okay, I know what we’re going to do,” Kaede said. They had to set this right somehow.

“What?”

“We’ll put the book back where we found it. Get the hell out of here and never mention it again,” Kaede proposed. There was too much at risk here.

Rin thought on it for a moment. “Agreed,” she said with a hasty nod. 

Nothing good could come from them knowing their old siblings were having an affair. The knowledge could only cause trouble for two people they utterly adored and cherished. So, it would be best if they pretended nothing ever happened. It sounded rather good in their heads. 

“All right, let’s get out of here,” Rin said.

They put the sketchbook back and hurried out of the room. They gathered the boys and rushed them to put on their footwear. The girls were acting peculiar, Kohaku thought, even for them. He wondered if something was wrong.

“Did you two find something?” Kohaku inquired as they all exited the apartment, practically shoved out by the girls, and Rin locked it up.

“No, we didn’t find anything,” both girls insisted too forcefully in his opinion.

The older boy’s gaze narrowed on them. “What did you find?”

“Nothing!” the girls answered. This was good practice at keeping the secret, right? If they could deny Kohaku, they could deny anyone, right? Right? Their heart rates sped up and their stomachs twisted.

“You two,” Kohaku said with a stern glare.

“We just found Kikyo’s sketchbook,” Kaede told him, waving the whole matter away, in an attempt to make it seem like it was trivial. She was not doing the best job considering how well Kohaku knew her and she as obviously upset with something along with Rin. She sucked her teeth and felt like her heart might explode in her chest. She did not feel confident in keeping the secret now.

“You mean the sketchbook she won’t let anyone ever see?” he asked.

“Look, we agreed we wouldn’t talk about this, okay,” Kaede informed him. Maybe they could all keep the secret. No one else would know to ask and pressure them over the matter. It would be fine. It would have to be fine. 

“And why did you agree on that?” Kohaku inquired, folding his arms across his chest.

“Because nothing good can come from us knowing Kikyo and Sesshomaru are having an affair,” Rin pointed out, hissing through her teeth and glaring at Kohaku. She was pissed he made them even say it aloud. They could ruin lives if this got out. They needed to just forget this whole mess happened. 

“So, don’t tell anybody,” Kaede ordered the boys, pointing at them with a rigid, slender finger.

Kohaku shrugged. He did not see why such a topic would come up in a conversation, so he doubted he would have an opportunity to share the information even if he wanted to. He really could not believe Kikyo was having an affair, though. He was not the only one. Shippo stood there, mouth open like fish out of water, eyes just as wide.

“Shippo, you’d better not tell anyone,” Kaede seemed to threaten the smaller boy, glaring at him like he was the weak link.

Shippo held up his hands. “I won’t!”

“Seriously, don’t say anything to anyone,” Rin said.

The girls believed Shippo was the most likely out of them to talk when they were around the older people in their lives. He would probably blab it to Kagome while trying to get close to her or say something after suffering some abuse from Inuyasha, who did not like the fox demon much because, well, Shippo was always trying to get close to Kagome. It never seemed to enter Inuyasha’s mind that Kagome could not possibly be interested in Shippo because she was almost ten years older than he was and she seemed to be hopelessly attracted to violent, crazy half-demons like Inuyasha.

Once the friends were in total agreement they were not going to say anything about the affair, they went back to skating. They did not say anything, but the air around them changed and no amount of pretending could remove the heavy atmosphere. They parted ways at around nine and Rin went back to Sesshomaru’s house. He was home and reading on the sofa.

“Hey, big brother,” Rin greeted him from the door as she started unbuckling her skates.

“Rin,” Sesshomaru said, not looking up from his book.

“Yes?”

“Why were your friends in here?” he inquired. He could smell her friends all over the place. They invaded his home. He expected it every now and then, as his home was Rin’s second home, but it was still not pleasing. He would rather she warn him.

Rin did not waver at all. She knew he would be aware she had her clique in his apartment. It was not the first time she brought one or all of them over when he was not around. They usually came in to use the bathroom or get something to drink. Little things. Every now and then, they would watch a movie when he was not there.

“The usual stuff,” she answered as to why her friends were there.

“You know better than to bring your company into my house without informing me,” he reprimanded her.

“I know, but you know how it goes,” she replied with a grin that made it seem every bad thing she did become something neutral or even good.

Sesshomaru only snorted. “See it doesn’t happen again.”

“I’ll try. I can’t help it this place is the closest to the park, though. We get hungry and stuff,” she replied and he grunted in response. “So, big brother, who was that woman earlier?” Rin asked again as she joined him on the sofa. She wanted to see if he would confess to her. It would make her feel like it was not as big a deal as it seemed if he admitted who she was.

“I told you don’t need to concern yourself with who she was,” he replied.

That answer did not make Rin feel any better about what was going on. Did her brother know Kikyo was married? He had to know because Kikyo would not lie about something like that, but then again, she did not think Kikyo was capable of having an affair until today anyway. Maybe he did not know, therefore he was not so bad, but that only made Kikyo worse. And besides, when was there a time that her eldest brother did not know everything about a situation before getting involved? He had to know that Kikyo was a married woman.

How could her big brother do what he was doing? How could he make Kikyo do something so wrong? He should have stopped things before they even started. Halting things before they got to where they were was the responsible thing to do. It would be advice he would give her.

“Rin,” Sesshomaru said.

“Yes?” she asked. 

“Is there something wrong?”

“No,” Rin squeaked out. Did he know that she knew? “Why would you even ask?” She tried to relax, but the more she tried, the tenser she felt. 

“Because you’re staring at me and not saying anything,” he informed her. She was just eyeing him as if she was in deep thought and she did not seem to like what was in her mind.

She blinked. “Oh, sorry. Can I watch TV?” she requested, as if that was what she was considering.

He glanced at her before giving a very small shrug. “Go ahead.”

Rin nodded and focused on the television as if it might whisper the secrets of the universe to her. Sesshomaru was a bit curious as to what made his little sister look so intense. He wondered what was on her mind. He figured she would tell him in due time. She always did.

-8-8-8-8-

Kaede entered the apartment she lived in with Midoriko. It was a spacious place with white walls that were decorated with pictures of the sisters and their family. The floors were wooden and everything was clean and orderly.

She took her skates off at the door and placed them in the hall closet. She peered around to see if her eldest sister was around. She really did not feel like seeing Midoriko right now because she was scared that she might actually tell on Kikyo. So, she tried to sneak into her room.

“Good evening, Kaede,” Midoriko called from the kitchen, which caused the girl to stop in her tracks. It would seem she had forgotten her sister could sense people, essentially seeing her without having to see her.

“Hey,” Kaede replied without bothering to go see her eldest sister, which was odd. Generally, she greeted her sisters with tight hugs, but she was not sure she could handle that. She needed to mentally prepare to face Midoriko and the trip home was not nearly enough time.

“Go wash up. Dinner is ready.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Midoriko craned an ebony eyebrow to the use of the word “ma’am.” Her little sister was never so polite when they were alone in the apartment. Wait, Kaede did not even call her “ma’am” when they were in the street unless she was playing around. Something was decidedly wrong.

“Hopefully no one broke anything while skating,” Midoriko sighed. There had been times when the friends were injured while out skating, but did not want to say anything because one of them had been threatened to have their skates taken away if they were hurt again. She would have to find out if that was the case and have a talk with Kaede about how it was best to come clean about these things because health was important and no one wanted to see the group unhappy, so it was unlikely their skates would be confiscated.

Midoriko studied her baby sister when she came to the table to have dinner. Kaede seemed to be making an effort not to look at her as they sat across from each other. The girl also played with her food, which was not typical of Kaede.

“Kaede, are you all right?” the eldest sister inquired.

“Fine, why do you ask?” Kaede squinted at her plate rather than look at Midoriko. 

“You seem distracted. Anything happen today?” Of course, if Kaede had been in a normal mood, she would have told Midoriko all about her day the second they sat down.

“Nothing more than usual,” the preteen answered a bit too rapidly and pushed around some more food with her chopsticks.

Midoriko pursed her lips briefly. “Are you sure?”

“Positive,” Kaede replied and then she figured since she was already talking to Midoriko, maybe she could see if there was some other explanation for why Kikyo’s sketchbook might have been in Sesshomaru’s apartment. “Hey, big sis.” She still did not look at Midoriko.

“Yes?” Midoriko replied.

Kaede’s eyes wandered the floor as she rubbed her forehead. “Has Kikyo ever forgotten her sketchbook anywhere before?” She finally looked up at Midoriko, searching her face for the right answer.

Midoriko shook her head. “Not to my knowledge. You know that thing is like her baby, so it would be very odd for her to just forget it somewhere. Why would you ask?”

“No reason, just curious,” the youngest sister answered.

“It was an odd question.” But, then again, the whole dinner was odd.

“I know, but sometimes weird things just pop into my head, you know?” Kaede shrugged. “Sis, do you remember the name of Kikyo’s demon friend?”

“I believe she said his name is Sesshomaru. Why?” Midoriko inquired. Her baby sister was certainly coming up with some bizarre topics of conversation.

“I think that’s Rin’s big brother,” Kaede replied.

“Small world. I thought Kikyo already knew Rin’s big brother, though.”

“She has two.” Kaede held up two fingers and wiggled them. “Sesshomaru’s not really social, so not too many people know him.” 

“That’s rather amusing they would meet then,” Midoriko commented.

Kaede looked away, finding the floor absolutely fascinating again. It was not amusing at all. Their sister was having an affair with Sesshomaru. Now, Kaede was not really judging Kikyo considering the heartless bastard her sister was married to. The troubling thing was really the dishonesty that came along with an affair. She always looked at her big sisters as beacons of morality. They always did the right thing, no matter what. Hell, sometimes she thought that was how Kikyo ended up married to Naraku in the first place.

The thought of Naraku made Kaede want to throw up. She could understand Kikyo seeking affection from other sources being married to someone as baleful as him. But, she could not believe Rin had seen Kikyo in Sesshomaru’s bed, meaning Kikyo was sleeping with him. There were many things wrong there and it was hard for Kaede to wrap her mind around it.

Kaede did not think Kikyo would ever sleep with another guy while she was married because it was wrong. Really, she did not even think her sisters had sex lives, even though Kikyo was married. She could not see Kikyo even kissing Naraku. In fact, she never did see Kikyo kiss Naraku. She could not recall ever seeing them touch after they got married. So, she did not think her sister slept with him. And, yes, Midoriko went out sometimes, but she never brought anyone home and she never stayed out for the night, so Kaede did not see where sex would even fit into her schedule.

She believed her sisters were into that whole “wait until marriage” thing. That was the message she got from them and her aunt, so it was very hard to imagine Kikyo having an adulterous relationship and sleeping with Sesshomaru. The whole thing seemed pretty seedy and hurt her head. None of this was Kikyo, so what was going on?

“Kaede?” Midoriko said, expecting Kaede to continue her line of thought of their sister knowing Rin’s brother. Kaede mentally checked out, though.

Midoriko thought Kaede brought up some rather unusual things and she decided to get to the bottom of why that was. Kaede was never so random with her conversations. She might come out of the blue with one question or statement, but never a whole discussion on things such as this and she rarely dropped conversations so abruptly.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo sat on the sofa in the apartment she shared with Naraku. She had on some music and drew in her extra sketchpad. She had gone out and bought a new book because Sesshomaru refused to return her proper book to her. He did not seem to understand it was the only means of entertainment she had when she was stuck in that apartment. But, it was probably safer in his hands than her own, so she did not put up much of a fight over it.

She did most of her drawing when she was in the apartment alone. At Sesshomaru’s place, she did not need her sketchbook for the most part because she had him. He kept her attention most of the time and if she drew things at his apartment, it was not because she was bored, but she had the itch to draw or he was working on his art, so she worked on her own.

Her activity was halted as she heard keys in the door. It seemed she was about to be back to her irksome, bothersome routine. The vacation truly was over the moment Naraku entered the apartment.

“Kikyo,” he greeted her with a haunting smile. The gleam in his dark, red eyes would have frightened most people.

“Hello, Naraku. How was your trip?” she asked as if she cared.

“It was very much to my liking,” he answered and he was still smiling, which disturbed her.

“What did you do?” she inquired because of his expression. She thought she might want some information on why his mood was so jolly, for him anyway. After all, it could spell trouble for her or people she knew or people in general.

“I looked at some land I’ve purchased and spoke with some contractors.”

“For what purpose?” she inquired. She did not like the sound of this. Why had he gone out and bought land without mentioning it to her?

“You’ll find out soon enough,” he answered with an even more alarming smile.

“Tell me,” she demanded with a stern look in her eyes.

“You’ll find out soon.”

“Tell me now,” she practically snarled at him, climbing to her feet. She had a vague idea what he was capable of and she did not want to be caught by surprise as he started to spin his web.

Naraku chuckled a bit with amusement dancing in his eyes. “If you must know, I’m going to have a beautiful house built for us in the countryside.”

“How? We can’t afford that,” she said. He wasted money left and right trying to impress the upper crust everywhere they went. How could he have money for land? For a house? For a move?

“I’m taking care of everything.”

“Well, I refused to move,” she declared. She would not let him take her away from her family again. She would not leave Sesshomaru for places unknown with a man she did not trust.

“You refuse?” he echoed as if he did not understand her words. She never outright said such words to him. Who did she think she was? What made her think she had a choice in the matter?

“That’s right. I refuse,” she repeated. She was not going anywhere now that she was back with her sisters and she had Sesshomaru in her life. She would not allow him to uproot her again and disrupt her life. She would not let him take her some place he could start “training” her, as he liked to think of it. 

He snickered darkly. “That’s funny. Do you think that you can refuse me?”

“I just did and I will continue to do so. I’m not going anywhere.” 

“Kikyo, whatever happened to ‘love, honor, and obey’?” he inquired with a smirk that seemed to be glued on his face.

Kikyo scoffed. She had already broken the first two, so why not the third one? She never really obeyed him anyway. 

“You dare repeat those vows to me as if they meant anything to you?” she countered with a frown on her face. He never followed any of those vows. He looked at her as an object to possess and put on a mask in order to win her. The mask was off, though.

“Of course they mean something to me. I love you,” he stated with that wicked, evil smirk still in place as if he was making fun of her.

Perhaps in his sick, twisted mind he did believe he loved her, she considered. But, that was moot because not only was his version of love not true to what the emotion was supposed to be, but also she did not love him. She realized if she loved anyone at all on the planet, it was Sesshomaru. 

Kikyo was stunned by that realization. Was she really in love with an arrogant dog demon? She had been trying her best to deny it, especially while she was on vacation with him, but now having to deal with her irksome husband, she had to yield to the thought. She was in love with Sesshomaru.

Naraku continued on after his declaration of love. “I do honor you and I want you to obey me,” he growled.

“I’m not your pet,” she replied.

“You will be,” he seemed to vow. And there it was. His true desire acknowledged, out in the open.

Kikyo wondered if that was the point to him having a house built in the countryside. Was it someplace far from civilization where he believed he could break her in the privacy of their own home? Someplace where he assumed no one would hear her screaming? Someplace where no one would notice she was missing? She would not put it passed him and she was pretty correct on all fronts.

The hanyou planned to build a home far away from any distractions and he was going to make her become what he wanted. He would spend all the time in the world it would take to make her the docile, little wife she should be. Once he had the perfect wife, he could continue his climb in society. He would be able to show her off at parties and have others envious of him. He would not be embarrassed to bring her around and no one would dare say anything against him with her by his side. He could begin to build his career with her by his side and not be blindsided again like that damned dog demon had done.

Beyond that, Naraku looked forward to breaking Kikyo and her proud stature. He would show her that he was in charge of everything and he would become the center of her universe as he believed he should be. He had his plans in place and everything already, so she was coming with him whether she liked it or not. There would be no refusals.

-8-8-8-8-

Sesshomaru was a bit curious as to what was bothering his little sister. He knew something was bothering her because of the way she kept looking at him. She stared at him when she thought he was focused on his book. He figured she should have been paying much more attention to the television since there was a rebroadcast of the X-games.

“Rin, if something is the matter, tell me,” the dog demon stated. He would make whoever disturbed her pay.

Rin bit her lip. She wanted so badly to demand to know what he thought he was doing with Kikyo. She knew Kikyo was not the type of woman she seemed to be, having an affair with her brother and everything. Kikyo was a good woman and she was kind. She would never do anything wrong, yet there she was sleeping with Sesshomaru while she was married to some other guy. Her big brother had to have done something to make this happen.

Rin knew her big brother was not the most good-natured person she would ever run into. He was good to her, which tended to be all that mattered to her, but now he might be helping to bring down a good woman and she did not like that.

“Big brother,” the preteen said in an unsure tone.

“Yes?” he replied.

“Why won’t you tell me about your new girlfriend?” she decided to ask. She did not know what else to say without coming right out and asking if that was really Kikyo in his bed earlier.

“I don’t want to be bothered about her later on.”

“Oh. Why? You know I’m just going to tell Mommy and Daddy you have a new girlfriend, anyway,” she pointed out. Well, she would try not to do that now, but he had to assume she would, as that was what she had done in the past.

“She’s not my girlfriend,” he said. It was pretty much the truth in his mind. Kikyo was not his girlfriend, but his mate. She just happened to be married to a bastard at the moment he had to get her away from.

Rin twisted her mouth up to one side. “No? But, she was in your bed.”

“Just because a woman is in my bed that doesn’t make her my girlfriend.”

Rin’s little brow furrowed at that information. Did her brother have a one-night stand with Kikyo? That was even worse because Kikyo really did not seem like that type of woman. It seemed like the more she thought on the matter the more it bothered her because of the different scenarios that were coming up. A one-night stand meant Kikyo cheated, but also had a meaningless fling. Her wedding vows meant that little to her. It could not be right.

“Are you going to tell me anything about her then?” Rin inquired.

“Watch your program,” he replied.

The little skater girl sighed. Was she going to have to tell her best friend her big brother might have just had a one-night stand with Kikyo? Kaede would never believe it because she knew Kaede thought the world of both of her sisters. But then again, Kaede might be more open to that idea now that they basically proved Kikyo was cheating on her husband.

Maybe she should just keep her mouth shut, Rin considered. They had agreed to never talk about it and she might as well keep that promise. It was just that, it really bothered her for some reason. It seemed wrong and it did not seem like something a nice person that Kikyo might do. It also did not seem like something a proud, dignified, honorable person like her brother might do. It did not make any sense. There was something wrong here and until they set it right, Rin felt like she did not know her big brother, did not know what type of person he was. Her world was at a tilt now and she was certain Kaede felt the same.

Rin turned to focus back on the television, even though her mind was not on the program. Sesshomaru noted the serious expression on her face and he could only wonder what was going through her mind. He figured whatever was on her mind had to do with the woman she saw in his bed. She was more than likely just being her usual eager, curious self, but her expression was different from any other she had ever worn. She looked so determined and deep in thought, maybe a little worried and confused too. He did not know what to think of it. _She’ll talk about it when she’s ready_ , he assured himself.

-8-8-8-8-

Midoriko was suspicious of her little sister. Kaede had been acting strangely since she came in and Midoriko figured it had something to do with Kikyo because Kaede kept bringing up the middle child. But, she bought up bizarre things.

The eldest sister could only wonder what might have happened with Kikyo to have Kaede asking all sorts of questions about their sister. She kept bringing up Kikyo’s sketchbook, wondering if Kikyo had ever left the book somewhere or if she would ever leave it some place unattended. Midoriko continuously pointed out that Kikyo would never leave that sketchbook anywhere. After saying it for the fourth time, Midoriko felt it was time to move forward.

“Kaede,” Midoriko said as she stood in the preteen’s doorway. Kaede was about to go to bed with having to be told so. She was worn out thanks to the day.

“Yeah?” the twelve-year-old replied.

“I’m beginning to think something is wrong.”

“Why?”

“Aside from the fact that you’re about to go to sleep at ten, even though you don’t have school tomorrow and I didn’t have to have physically stand in front of the TV to tell you to do so?” Midoriko pointed out. She had a long list of peculiar things her little sister had done that night, so she could go on if that one item was not enough.

“It feels later than ten,” Kaede said because to her it certainly did feel later than ten.

“Tell me what’s wrong. Did something happen with Kikyo?” the eldest sister asked, her eyes swimming with concern.

“No, nothing happened with Kikyo,” Kaede denied a bit too vehemently.

Midoriko frowned. “What happened with Kikyo?”

“Nothing!”

“Kaede, you know you can tell me anything. So, tell me what happened with Kikyo,” Midoriko requested in a gentle tone. If something happened to their sister and she was not there to help, Midoriko was not sure if she would be able to forgive herself. She was not sure their parents would be able to forgive her. She had already dropped the ball by letting Kikyo marry the scum of the Earth. She could not fail again.

“Nothing happened!” Kaede insisted.

“Something did happen, which is why you’re being so difficult. What happened to our sister? If something is wrong, you need to tell me. Perhaps, I can help,” the eldest said in an understanding voice.

“You can’t help,” Kaede replied with a miserable groan. Her shoulders slumped and she rubbed her face with one hand. No one could help their sister. The damage was already done and could not be fixed. It was like a crumbled up piece of paper; the wrinkles would never come out.

Midoriko’s stomach flipped. “How do you know I can’t help? Tell me what’s wrong.”

“It’s nothing!” the preteen said forcefully and tears gathered in her eyes. She never had to lie like she was doing now. She told little lies, of course. She was twelve for crying out loud. But, she never had to deal with something so big before.

“Kaede,” Midoriko said the name impatiently. “What happened with Kikyo? What is wrong?” Her voice was even and stern as she stepped deeper into the room. She was not going to accept anything less than the truth now.

“I can’t tell you,” the younger sister muttered.

“You will tell me right now.” Midoriko pointed to the floor. 

“I can’t.”

“Why? Did Kikyo tell you to keep something from me?” Midoriko asked. The last time Kikyo had a secret from them, she was dating that damned hanyou and would not listen to reason.

Tears slid down Kaede’s face. “No, she doesn’t know I know.”

Midoriko sighed and her heart constricted in her chest. Fear and worry wrapped around her like barbed wire. She went to Kaede, sitting next to her on the bed with a hand on her shoulder. Kaede leaned into her, comforted by the rare body contact.

“Kikyo is keeping something from us is what you’re saying?” the eldest sister inquired.

Kaede only made a noise and shook her head. She was not going to give the secret away. She was not going to betray Kikyo, even if it was to Midoriko. She was not even supposed to know about it. Why the hell did they have to go snooping instead of just skating? 

“Kaede,” Midoriko said.

“I can’t tell you,” the child repeated, voice broken as a sob tried to escape. 

Midoriko accepted that because of how convicted Kaede sounded. She did not think she needed Kaede to spell it out, anyway. She figured she would sit down and review Kaede’s behavior for the night and she would discover what the problem was. For now, she comforted Kaede until the girl stopped crying and fell asleep against her. 

-*-(Next day)-*-

Kikyo strolled down the street, holding her head up high, even though she felt something eating at the pit of her stomach. She was going to have lunch with her sisters, so she should feel better. She was not in particularly good mood despite the fact that she was going to see them. It was because she had to deal with Naraku and his wicked smirk for all of last night. As much as she hated to admit it to herself, she was worried. She knew he was not planning anything good for her in the move that he wanted to make and she hated to think what might be on his mind.

Sure, Kikyo could take care of herself, but she still worried. She also did not want things to ever come to the point where she might have to purify Naraku, kill him. She did not want to find out what her breaking point was or what evil he was capable of. She just wanted to live her life. Was that too much to ask?

As Kikyo got to her sisters, she noticed they did not look like they were in better moods. Kaede stared at her feet and her cheeks were puffed out, which was a clear sign she was upset. The youngest sister looked up, her eyes were red, and noticed Kikyo approaching. Midoriko turned to see Kikyo coming.

The eldest sister rose to her feet, pushing her chair back as if she was furious with the piece of plastic. Kaede flinched as the scrapping sound echoed through the air. The little girl looked at Kikyo with sorrowful eyes. 

“I’m sorry,” the youngest sister apologized to Kikyo while the eldest greeted Kikyo with a sound slap on the cheek. Kikyo’s eyes were wide with shock. The pain did not even register to her brain.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Why the hell is Midoriko slapping Kikyo?


	12. Tragic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

12: Tragic 

Kikyo’s head snapped to the side as her elder sister’s hand impacted her cheek. The middle child was more surprised than injured, but she could only wonder what she had done to earn that slap. The last time Midoriko hit her in anger was when she got engaged to Naraku. What could she have done that was on that level of offense and stupidity? 

“Sister,” Kikyo said in her usual voice. It was just about all she could muster because she was so shocked. She managed to keep tears in, knowing she was at a point where she would have to steel herself. Something happened and she was about to be an island, like before. Well, she would have to do better than before. Before, with Midoriko’s judgment over her head, she doubled-down on her commitment to Naraku, let those emotions, the resentment and anger toward her sister, rule her. Never again. She made foolish decisions then. She could not afford that now.

“What is wrong with you?” Midoriko growled. “Go sit over there right now.” She pointed to the empty chair across from the one she had occupied.

Kikyo did not argue and went to sit down at the table as if she was an obedient puppy. She stared at the table, mind consumed by what it was she had done to warrant the slap. Kaede started at the middle sister while the eldest sat down. Midoriko looked back from each younger sister with a furious expression on her face.

The middle sister took a moment, licked her lips, and then spoke. “Um… Sister, what did I do?”

“Don’t try to play innocent. It’s much too late for that,” Midoriko stated, tone severe.

“What did I do?” Kikyo asked once again because she really did not know what she had done to upset her elder sister.

Midoriko only scowled. She was not sure what she wanted to say yet. She focused on Kikyo now, which Kaede was happy about. The preteen did not want to sit there and have both of her sisters angry with her, not that any of it was her fault. She was just caught in the middle as far as she was concerned.

“Sister,” Kikyo said a third time.

“How could you do this? Do you know the example you’re setting for your little sister?” Midoriko demanded, motioning to Kaede.

“Don’t drag me into this,” Kaede muttered. She wished she could vanish into the wind, but escaping would not help. No matter what, this would end badly. She needed a time machine, needed to go back to save them all.

“What did I do?” Kikyo inquired once again, her tone now deliberate. Why could her sister not just tell her what she had done wrong so she could correct the problem?

“You’re having an affair with Sesshomaru,” Midoriko answered through gritted teeth.

Kikyo’s eyes went wide briefly while Kaede blew out a breath and looked at the ground. How Midoriko came to the right conclusion on the matter, neither of her younger sisters would ever figure out. All Kaede knew was that she had not said anything and Kikyo damn sure was not flaunting what she was doing. Kaede wished she had not kept bringing Sesshomaru up the other night.

Kaede could not believe when Midoriko had called her to ask her if that was what her problem was, which eventually turned into if Kikyo was having an affair with Sesshomaru. The preteen had not known what to do or what to say by that time. She had panicked, stammering through a lie she never did finish, and that was all the eldest needed in confirmation she had come to the right conclusion. She had suspected something was going on between Kikyo and Sesshomaru, but she had always convinced herself Kikyo would never do such a thing. It would seem she had been wrong.

“Will you deny it?” Midoriko asked Kikyo, eyes daring Kikyo to do such a thing.

“We both know I will not deny the truth,” Kikyo answered, sitting up straight. She refused to be ashamed of this, even though she felt her sister’s outrage was justified. She had destroyed her own honor for a man, just like before. She would even understand if Midoriko thought she was a fool, but she was not ashamed.

“I feel as if I don’t know what you might do anymore,” Midoriko huffed, leaning forward as if the fury radiating from her might somehow reach out to strangle Kikyo for her.

“Miko,” Kikyo said, emotions crushing her throat. It was a nickname that she had used since before she could remember. Her parents used to claim that was her first word and she did not doubt that. While she was not ashamed, worry bubbled in her stomach. There was no way for this to go right for her and she could not prepare herself for what she knew was to come. She could not steel herself for it, no matter how much she tried.

“Don’t call me that and try to soften me up. How could you do this?” Midoriko demanded.

Kikyo was not sure where to begin to answer that question. Part of her even dared to think it was none of her big sister’s business. She was an adult and she could do what she wanted to do. That would not fly and if she was not forthcoming, she might lose her big sister like she had when she married Naraku. She did not want to go through that again.

“Are you not ashamed of yourself?” Midoriko inquired and that got a quick response from Kikyo that no one expected.

“No,” Kikyo replied.

Midoriko’s frown managed to deepen, cutting through her jaw. “What do you mean ‘no’? You are a married woman.”

“I know I am.” There was no way she could forget. Well, she seemed to forget about half of the time she was with her paramour. The other half, all she could think about was how her marriage prevented her from fully being with her lover.

“And yet you would do something so disgraceful?”

“It is not something that I can explain…” Kikyo trailed off. She would not have been able to stop herself from being with Sesshomaru if she tried. There was a pull between them. He understood her in ways she did not know possible.

“You will break the relationship off now.”

“I will not,” Kikyo said, holding her head up high. There was no way in Hell she was breaking up with Sesshomaru.

“What?” Midoriko inquired, her voice nearly rising because of her anger.

Kikyo looked her sister right in the eye and spoke deliberately to avoid any misunderstanding. “I will not break things off with Sessho.”

“Sessho?” Midoriko echoed, drawing back and tensing. She could not believe that one actually left her younger sister’s mouth. “You will not continue such depraved behavior. You will break things off with that demon now.”

“I will not,” Kikyo stated again.

“Does this mean you’re going to get a divorce?” Kaede asked in a hopeful voice. She would rather not draw attention to herself, but she would feel so much better if first of all, Kikyo was away from Naraku and secondly, the affair would not seem so bad if she was going to get a divorce.

“Naraku would never agree to such a thing,” Kikyo replied, speaking through her teeth and glancing away. She knew that because she had almost approached the subject several times since she started seeing Sesshomaru, mostly thinking aloud how much happier they both would be if they went their separate ways. Naraku made it clear he would never let her go. He enjoyed tormenting her and she knew that long before any of this.

“Then you’re just going to go on with this?” Midoriko demanded, waving her hand and sneering.

“It is my desire,” the middle sister answered. It was the best she could do and the closest she could come to happiness at the moment.

Midoriko’s upper lip curled and she looked down her nose regarding Kikyo. “How can you desire this lecherous thing?”

“I feel… strongly for Sessshomaru,” Kikyo answered in a guarded tone. Midoriko would not be pleased with that answer. She was certain Midoriko would live a much happier life if she never felt strongly for anyone ever again considering Naraku.

Kaede would have been happy to know that if the situation were differently. It would have been cool for her sister to be dating her best friend’s brother and for them to be in love. It would be cool if someday they got married, so she and her best friend would be family. But, it was not so cool when they were having an affair and Kikyo was going to remain married to the bastard that she was tied to.

“You felt strongly for that hanyou scum, too. If this is what you wish to do, fine. Do not call me should your filthy husband find out about this. Do not call me when this all crumbles around you,” Midoriko stated and she stood up to show that she was leaving.

“Sister, do not do this to me again,” Kikyo pled.

“You never listen to me,” Midoriko said.

“It was once,” Kikyo argued. Midoriko saw the truth and she missed it. Was she to be punished for that for the rest of her life? Well, yes, if her husband had his way.

Midoriko scoffed. “And look at where that got you. You’re married to a disgusting wretch on a good day. Now, you complicate that matter by going off to have an affair with a full demon. You seem to enjoy setting yourself up for horrible situations and never want to be talked out of them. Fine, enjoy the new tragedy that you’ve merrily set up for yourself.”

“Sister,” Kikyo protested.

“Kaede, will you come with me?” Midoriko inquired.

Kaede looked back and forth from each sister. She hated being in middle on the rare occasions they fought. She did not want to have to choose sides because that was impossible. But, this felt more permanent than the usual. If she left with Midoriko now, it meant she was on Midoriko’s side. It meant she was forsaking Kikyo as well. It meant Kikyo would have no one, except Naraku. No one deserved that, least of all their sister.

“I’ll see you at home later,” Kaede replied.

Midoriko focused her gaze on the preteen as if trying to judge if she was actually with Kikyo on the matter. Kaede’s chocolate eyes did not seem to be against her, but they appeared concerned for Kikyo. She thought Kaede had cause to worry. Their sister was doing it again, making a poor decision and standing by it as if she were some kind of fool. Kikyo was an intelligent creature, so why did she make such obvious mistakes? Well, like before, she would leave Kikyo to see the error of her ways since the middle sister did not like to listen to reason.

“Fine,” Midoriko answered and she walked off.

“She took this pretty hard,” Kaede said for lack of a better thing. She had expected everything that happened, but it took a bit to get used to Midoriko’s temper. She wished Midoriko was not so quick to slap Kikyo, not that Kikyo seemed to care. She had not even touched the already-bruising cheek to check on it.

“How did you find out?” Kikyo inquired, eyes staring off into nothing.

“I don’t know how Midoriko figured it out, but I found out through Rin,” Kaede replied.

Kikyo tilted her head slightly. “Rin?”

“She saw you lying in his bed the other day. We found your sketchbook in the apartment, too,” the twelve-year-old explained.

“Oh…” Kikyo’s eyes fell down at the table. She now felt thoroughly ashamed of herself despite her claim of the contrary. She did not want her little sister to know she had broken her vows or that she was sleeping with Sesshomaru. That was too much for a twelve-year-old to have to deal with.

“You know, I don’t agree with what you’re doing.”

“I didn’t think you did.” Now, her cheek burned, as she thought how low she had to have fallen in her baby sister’s eyes. Kaede’s opinion of her mattered. She was an example for Kaede and she should do her best. Her parents would expect no less. How many people would she disappoint in this life? With her parents, in the afterlife.

Kaede took a deep breath. “But, if you do feel strongly for Sesshomaru, I can understand it. I mean, I know Naraku sucks and he doesn’t make you happy. I mean, I’ve seen him trying to purposely hurt you. He talks to you so mean and he undercuts everything you like or try to do. If Sesshomaru does make you happy and treats you right, then you should be with him. I mean, only a stupid person would stay with a person who makes them miserable when a person that makes them happy is right there, so I can understand why you’re doing this. It’s just you didn’t do this the right way.” She sounded wiser than her twelve years would suggest.

With a nod, Kikyo gave a small smile. “I know. I would gladly get a divorce if Naraku would agree to it. I wouldn’t have stayed with him this long if things were so simple.”

Kaede gripped her pants at her thighs and glared at the table for a moment. “So, what are you going to do? Go on like you have?”

Kikyo sighed. “Until a better option presents itself, I suppose so.”

“What if Naraku finds out?” Kaede asked.

“I haven’t thought that out yet,” Kikyo confessed.

Kikyo never did consider what might happen if Naraku found out about what she was doing. He did not seem too interested in her lately, except for when he was telling her about the move he had planned. There was something else on his mind and she was not sure what it was. She might want to watch him, though. He schemed with the best of them, after all.

-8-8-8-8-

Naraku marched through the hallway at his work, barely acknowledging anyone he went by. He craved vengeance against Sesshomaru more than anything else and it took over much of his thought. But, in the back of his mind, he noted a change in Kikyo’s behavior. She had gone from passive aggressive to outwardly defiant, especially when he brought up the move. The last time he moved her out of the city, she had not objected as much. It was clear she did not want to do it, but she had not said as much. So, what brought on the change in her? He would find out after he got things going with his revenge on Sesshomaru.

He went into the dog demon’s office when Sesshomaru had gone away. He was not sure how long the nobleman was going to be out, but he did not require that much time to set up what he wanted to do. He went over to the computer and smirked when he noticed Sesshomaru had left the machine on.

“He makes it so easy,” Naraku commented to the air as he pulled out a portable hard drive from his pocket. He hooked it up to Sesshomaru’s computer, uploaded some software, and was done in less than a minute with what he wanted to do.

The half-demon left the office with a wicked smirk on his face. It was about time for that mutt to learn his place. It would be amazing to watch that dog go down in flames. All he had to do was wait and watch. And now, it was time for him to learn what was going on with his dear little wife and why she had suddenly changed so much.

Naraku suspected it would be much harder for him to find out what was going on with Kikyo than it was to get his revenge on Sesshomaru. After all, everyone knew Kikyo did not like him enough to talk to him about her. He could not even pretend he was trying to do something nice for her because they would only grow suspicious of him. He could not follow her, as she would sense his presence as soon as he was close enough to notice her. He was not sure how to approach the situation. He would think on it, though.

“I could hire someone to look into her,” he considered. Of course, he did not have the money for that at the moment. There had to be a way.

-8-8-8-8-

Sesshomaru returned to his office and immediately smelled Naraku had been there. He frowned and followed the scent trail to try to develop an idea of what the hanyou asshole was doing in his office. He noted the scent lingered by his desk, strongest on the computer, and then went back to the outside. It seemed Naraku just wanted him to kill him, the full demon thought. 

“What did he do on my computer?” Sesshomaru figured it had to be some kind of set up. Naraku put something on his computer to frame him somehow. But, what and how?

The platinum-haired male checked everything on his computer and things seemed to be fine. Maybe Naraku was not smart enough to put anything on his computer. He searched through his desk to be sure the walking-dead hanyou had not stolen anything. When he was certain everything in his office was still in order, he went in search for the man that seemed to want to die.

Sesshomaru found Naraku in his office on the phone. The half-breed ignored the furious demon at his door, which was not a wise decision. Sesshomaru threw out his hand and his energy whip went straight through the phone like lava through cardboard. Naraku turned to full demon now that he had no other distractions. He glared at Sesshomaru and growled.

“Is there something that I can do for you?” Naraku inquired in an impatient tone.

“You were in my office,” Sesshomaru stated.

“I was,” the half-demon confirmed.

“For what?” the golden-eyed male snarled. He doubted Naraku had any idea how badly he wanted to the hanyou to not be breathing anymore. It would solve both private and business issues for him if the damned crimson-eyed annoyance would just die.

“I thought I might have left some notes in there from when we worked together,” Naraku lied smoothly.

Sesshomaru’s gaze narrowed. He could practically smell the lie there. “From so long ago?” Did Naraku take him for a fool?

Naraku shrugged. “I thought it was worth the look.”

Sesshomaru took a low breath and cracked his knuckles on one hand. “And why would you think something so foolish?”

“I had already looked in the obvious places,” Naraku answered.

“Listen careful, fool. You might think I won’t destroy you for whatever reasons, but you’re quite wrong. Stay out of my office and do not touch anything of mine ever again, lest we clash. So, unless you’re as stupid as you look, you’ll leave my office alone,” Sesshomaru informed the hanyou. If the idiot decided to not heed this warning, Sesshomaru would waste no time cutting the fool down.

Naraku frowned at the threat. He really wanted to put that blasted dog in his place, but he supposed it was all in due time. He watched Sesshomaru exit the room as if he was the ending of a hurricane. Oh, yes, he was going to put that dog right where he belonged.

“There will be justice, dog. And it will be glorious.” Naraku could not wait for it, wished it was about to happen now. Not only would he take Sesshomaru down, but he would use it to help him build his home and his training room for Kikyo.

Sesshomaru went back to his office and checked it again. He knew that irksome half-breed lied to him, but he could not guess why the hanyou had been in his office. Nothing looked out of place and nothing appeared to be missing. He frowned as he could not figure it out.

“I doubt he was looking for something that might prove I’ve been with Kikyo,” Sesshomaru murmured.

The nobleman was doubtful Naraku had a clue he even knew Kikyo. The hanyou seemed too stupid to figure that out on his own and he had not left any evidence at the apartment. Kikyo did not have anything of his, except messages on her phone and they never exchanged any messages that might make someone think something was going on between them. So, he did not know what Naraku might have been going in his office.

-*-(New day)-*-

Kikyo sat at home, on the sofa, feeling lost, as she had been for several days. She had been trying her best to get into contact with her big sister, but as expected, Midoriko was not taking her calls. She knew better than to leave a voice message. Midoriko would only delete those. It seemed she was cut off again and she could not really do anything about it. With a sigh, she tossed her phone to the opposite end of the sofa.

“What am I going to do?” Kikyo ran her hand through her hair.

Before when she had angered her elder sister with her actions, she had been able to call her aunt and pled her case to her aunt, but she could not do that now. It was not like she could tell her aunt she was having an affair. The woman would surely side with Midoriko as soon as she found out. Kikyo was on her own with her current issues and she doubted she was going to get through to her big sister, no matter how hard she tried.

She was tempted to call Kaede and find out their sister’s emotional temperature. She held off, not wanting to involve Kaede in this mess any more than she already had. She hated she put Kaede in the situation, hated that Kaede’s opinion of her lowered. She rubbed her forehead.

“How did I let things come to this?” Kikyo did not have the answers, thinking about how good she felt when she was with Sesshomaru and how nothing mattered at the time. That was how things came to this. She had been too careless, though, if Kaede had figured out it all out.

Kaede had tried to plead with Midoriko, going so far as to say the older woman was acting childish. The eldest did not seem to like that much and told Kaede that if she wanted to side with Kikyo, she might as well go live with her, too. Kaede backed up off of the argument after that one. She was neutral from then on out.

The sisters were not the only ones busy with a crisis and issues. Naraku spent his time digging to find out if what the reason was behind his wife’s new attitude. He considered she might have gone out and gotten a job, which he would personally make sure did not last if that was the case, but he could not find any evidence for that. Well, he thought the easiest thing to do to figure out what was going on was to get a copy of her cell phone records. It was the only thing he could think of to link her to anything.

It was not hard to get what he needed and he looked through the records. He decided to call the numbers from a payphone to see if they would lead to anything. A few of the numbers supported the theory she was looking for a job, but she was not employed. They were hospitals, clinics, and things such as that. He got to Midoriko’s number and she had not picked up, but he heard her voicemail message.

He frowned as he listened to her voicemail. He hated her and the sound of her voice ignited a flame in him that burned with loathing. He could not wait to see her face when he finally broke her little sister. That would be the sweetest revenge against her. He bet she had something to do with Kikyo acting so strangely.

The next number changed his opinion, though. It was a frequently used number and when he dialed, he once again got the voicemail. He recognized that voice. It was the low voice of the biggest bastard that he had ever met. Why was Kikyo calling that mongrel?

“Kikyo, what the hell is going on? Are you conspiring against me?” He scratched his cheek. He did not think Kikyo would do something like that. She was not that devious, but what other reason might Kikyo have to contact Sesshomaru?

He dared consider the impossible. Could his little innocent maiden actually be cheating on him with that mutt? Well, why else would she call him at least once a day? It was either cheating or plotting against Naraku. Sesshomaru might have even put Kikyo up to it. Oh, that mutt! It was one thing to try to make an ass out of him at work, but to have touched his property or turned his property against him was another thing altogether. Now, he would have to do worse to the mongrel regardless of what he did with Kikyo and he was also going to have to do something about Kikyo.

But, before he did not anything about his possibly adulterous wife, he would deal with the demon who ruined her. He would make Sesshomaru’s life a living hell somehow, both his home and business life. He would show that mutt to not mess with him.

-8-8-8-8-

Sesshomaru had a problem of his own, so he was not thinking about Naraku anymore. In the back of his mind, he realized he had not heard from Kikyo in a while, but that something at work too precedent over that for the moment. It seemed that something happened at work that the boss wanted to talk to him about as soon as possible, which meant the was staying after hours. He could not figure out what new issues that crazy old man might have, but he figured he would find out when he met up with him.

“Still no manners, I see,” Totosai commented as Sesshomaru entered his office without knocking, as usual.

“You’re holding me up. Tell me why I’m here,” Sesshomaru commanded.

“You just want me to be blunt with you?” the bug-eyed old man inquired, leaning back in his desk chair.

“If it is the most efficient way to inform me why you’re wasting my time,” the dog demon answered.

“Okay, a worm was found in our computer systems. It was transferring money to an overseas account,” Totosai said. “We managed to catch it and trace it before too much got away. You won’t believe who we traced it to.”

Sesshomaru did not respond. He did not see any reason to do so. He did not think the old coot was done yet. He also did not play guessing games, so he would wait for Totosai to stop playing around and tell him what the problem was.

“We traced it back to you, imagine that,” Totosai said.

“Back to me?” Sesshomaru echoed, face pulling to the side as he reared back slightly.

“Weird, eh? Right back to your computer, your work computer.” Totosai twiddled his fingers.

“And you think I did it?” Sesshomaru did not sound upset, even though internally, he plotted the death of whoever tried to frame him.

With a chuckle, Totosai held up his hands. “Whoa, you’re getting ahead of the game, Sesshomaru. I didn’t say all of that. I said we traced it back to your computer. Now, I’ve known you pretty much all of your life, so I know you wouldn’t do anything like that. That’s why I’m not going to bother with accusing you.”

Sesshomaru’s expression did not change. He did not utter a thanks. The whole thing was a waste of his time if he was not being accused of anything and Totosai had not informed him why the thing was traced back to his computer.

“Then what are you doing?” Sesshomaru inquired.

“I guess warning you as well as letting you know what’s going on. I figure someone set you up, but considering how everyone here hates you, it could be just about anyone,” Totosai commented, throwing his hands up in the air as if the whole situation was pointless.

“Well, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Yeah. Oh, one more thing, Sesshomaru.”

“What?” the dog demon asked.

“This thing might get around, so don’t be surprised if that daddy of yours finds out.”

Sesshomaru growled very low, but did not say anything as he turned to leave the office. He did not care if his father found out about him doing something he had not done. His main concern was finding out who had set him up and then making that person pay dearly.

The dog demon had a good idea who would pull such an underhanded stunt instead of facing him directly. After all, most other idiots around the office just ignored him if they disliked him, but only one grimy moron seemed to go out of his way to be irksome. Also, he had a few confrontations with people in his office and, yes, they were foolish and bothersome, but at least they were brave enough to face him. 

He would deal with that bastard the second he could. At the moment, he wanted to go home and forget all about things. He considered calling Kikyo because he had not heard from her in the past few days. She had better be safe or he was not going to hesitate in decapitating a certain hanyou when he saw him in the morning. As he headed home, his phone went off. He looked at the number, hoping it was Kikyo, but it was not. It was his home number. He answered, thinking Rin might be calling him. 

“Yes,” Sesshomaru answered the call.

“Come home,” a deep voice commanded the dog demon.

“Yes, Father,” Sesshomaru said and he disconnected the call while turning the car around. He guessed it was time to get a lecture on the embezzling issue, even though he had not done it. He could not figure out why his father liked to waste time the way he did.

-8-8-8-8- 

Sesshomaru marched into his family’s mansion and went right to the lounge where his father was with his stepmother, Izayoi. He stood before them and eyed them for a moment to understand how much time he was going to have to waste with them. There was something wrong with their gazes in his opinion. He had a feeling he was in for something he would not be able to defend himself from, which was new.

“Have a seat, Sesshomaru,” his father commanded, motioning to the arm chair across from them. 

“I’d rather stand,” the younger demon replied.

“Have it your way, as you seem to be doing lately. Do you have any idea why you’re here?” his father inquired.

“Enlighten me,” Sesshomaru answered. He knew better than to guess why he was summoned. It was a parental trick to see if he had done something they did not know about and he thought he was being busted on. It still worked on Rin, but he and Inuyasha were very hip to it. Of course, Inuyasha fell for it well into his teens.

“All right. Does the name Kikyo mean anything to you?” his father asked.

Sesshomaru went rigid. He really had not been expecting that question, but it would explain the look on their eyes. Well, it would explain the look if they knew enough about Kikyo and his relationship with her. He was now glad he had not guessed.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the word seems to be spreading, what is Sesshomaru about to go through?


	13. Ashes to Ashes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

13: Ashes to Ashes

Sesshomaru stood before his father and stepmother like a solider at attention. His stoic mask had slipped enough for his father to notice after his father asked him a very important question. The younger demon knew he had to weigh his words carefully before he answered, but he was not sure if he was going to have the time to be as cautious as he would have liked. 

“Your silence is not an answer and it is not acceptable,” the older demon stated. “Now, what does the name Kikyo mean to you?”

“Why do you ask?” Sesshomaru countered. What did it matter to his father? Kikyo was his and that was that. His relationship with her had no affect on his father or their family.

“I’m sure you can guess why.”

“I’m sure I can’t.”

“You’re having an affair with a married woman. Would you like me to walk you around the issue?” his father inquired.

“It is unnecessary,” Sesshomaru replied. It was also no one’s business, but he had to wonder how his father found out. Well, no. That was not much of a mystery. Rin probably said something and his father went digging from there.

“If it’s unnecessary then why are you carrying on in such a distasteful fashion?”

Sesshomaru was silent. He considered telling his father what he did in his life was his own business and try to end the argument there, but that was not true. He was a representative of their family and whatever he did reflected back onto the family. So, whatever he did was their family business when it might reflect poorly on them. It was not usually an issue unless he grew impatient with something and then let his frustration get away from him. He did not see how his relationship with Kikyo reflected poorly on them, though.

“Sesshomaru, you must know by now that standing there saying nothing is not going to help,” his father informed him.

“I don’t know what to tell you, then. I am not carrying on distastefully as you put it,” Sesshomaru replied. He would consider his relationship with Kikyo rather bland and banal, offensive to no one, save the fact that she was married.

“The woman is married.”

“To someone lower than a worm’s stomach. If he were thrown in mud, he would leave a streak in it as he exited,” the younger demon argued.

“That does not make her any less married,” his father pointed out.

“What about what she wants? He is unworthy of her and she wants me,” Sesshomaru stated. This should have been enough, but his father was unmoved.

“She is married.” Apparently, this would be his father’s argument. 

“No one knows,” Sesshomaru decided to argue.

“Of course someone knows. After all, we know,” his father said, motioning between himself and his silent wife.

Sesshomaru conceded that. Someone had to tell his parents. It was probably Rin, but he did not see how. Yes, she had seen Kikyo in his bed and she had claimed Kikyo looked familiar. Did his little sister really know Kikyo? He would find out. 

“You will end this affair,” his father ordered him, leaning forward in his chair as if that gave his command more power.

“I will do no such thing,” Sesshomaru replied, tilting his chin in the air.

The older dog demon frowned and growled. He was about to tear into his eldest son verbally, but Izayoi spoke up first. She figured they would not get anywhere with the two proud demons barking at each other now that her husband’s alpha status was being challenged by his son deciding to not comply with an order.

“Sesshomaru, think of the woman you’re involved with. You’re only doing her harm by interfering in her marriage,” Izayoi said.

“Her husband is doing her harm,” Sesshomaru stated.

“He is the man she chose to marry. It was her choice,” Izayoi said. 

“That doesn’t excuse him for hurting her.” It also seemed to suggest Kikyo did not choose Sesshomaru. Kikyo decided Sesshomaru was worth breaking her vows for. Kikyo decided to go on vacation with Sesshomaru. Kikyo decided Sesshomaru’s apartment was home. Kikyo chose all of that. So, how did her husband being a chose matter? “Besides, Kikyo chose me over him,” he decided to say. 

His father’s eyes flashed. “Listen, Sesshomaru.” He was not about to watch Izayoi try to get some form of sympathy or understanding out of his eldest son when he was certain none of that existed in the boy’s stoic being. He was too much like his birth mother.

“I have been listening to utter nonsense,” Sesshomaru replied.

His father’s jaw twitched. “You will end this affair or I’ll simply cut you off from everything. I will not have this family involved in such a tasteless scandal.”

“How is this a scandal?” Sesshomaru asked. No demon on Earth, save his father apparently, would consider his relationship with Kikyo scandalous. He wanted what he wanted and he would have what he wanted. The only thing most demons would find odd was Kikyo being human and his father should understand that.

“She is married. Now, you will end this affair or that is it. You will be disowned,” his father stated through gritted teeth.

The elder dog demon thought he had his arrogant son. To Sesshomaru, his inheritance was everything. He was the heir to a vast legacy he was completely proud of. There was no way he would throw that all away for a little human female he could not even have since she was married.

Sesshomaru stood there. His expression did not change as he milled over the new information. Was Kikyo worth more than his birthright to him? In the past, he would have thought himself a fool for even weighing something against his birthright, but after spending so much time with her, he was certain she was the one thing that might actually come before his birthright to him.

The young demon doubted his father meant that threat anyway. After all, was he going to leave everything in the hands of Inuyasha? That thought was laughable since the empty-headed hanyou probably could not find his own ass with both hands and a map. No one in his right mind would leave everything to Inuyasha, Sesshomaru was certain of that. Beyond that, Sesshomaru had other options. It was not like his father was his only parent or his only parent with a deep, rich legacy. His father knew that. All right, he would call his father’s bluff on the issue.

“Fine. Severe our ties,” Sesshomaru declared in his usual tone.

Both of his parents were surprised by that answer and it showed very clearly on their faces. Izayoi even gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. He did not care to stick around to witness any more of their reactions, so he turned to leave. As he began to walk away, his father regained his voice.

“I’m not joking, Sesshomaru,” his father informed him.

“We’ll see,” Sesshomaru commented.

Sesshomaru walked out and did not look back. He would wait to see what his father had planned, but he was not going to give up Kikyo. She had given up things for him, so he could do the same. She was his, even if she was married. It was not something to be argued.

As he made his way to his car, the dog demon again wondered who informed his parents of Kikyo. His only suspect was still Rin, so he would find out if it was her and then go from there. He called her and find out where she was.

“Hey, big brother!” Rin chirped as she answered the phone. She loved it when one of her brothers called her instead of the other way around. It was always nice to know they thought of her as much as she thought of them.

“Where are you now, Rin?” Sesshomaru inquired.

“With my friends. I am kicking butt in go-carts,” she answered.

Sesshomaru would have chuckled if he was a lesser being. Her happiness was amusing, especially since she was always so energetic and sincere. He often wondered why she was like that. She was the only one in the family like that. Sure, Inuyasha was hyper, but it was not the same thing compared to Rin. Even her human mother was not like that. Izayoi was reserved and elegant. If Rin did not look like Izayoi, they might have to wonder if the girl fell out of the sky and landed in their family. 

“Rin, there’s something I want to talk to you about. Come by my house when you’re done,” Sesshomaru ordered.

“Yes, big brother,” she agreed. 

Rin had plans to go to Sesshomaru’s place when everything was all said and done anyway since she and her friends had plans to go skating in the morning. She showed up at his apartment just in time for her curfew, which remained in place no matter where she stayed. Inuyasha was a bit flexible with it if she called, but Sesshomaru and their father were strict when it came to her being in at a certain time.

“Hey, big brother!” Rin greeted Sesshomaru as she entered the apartment, kicking her shoes off at the door.

“Did you eat, Rin?” he asked from his studio. He was working on a painting while trying not to let his father’s threat bother him.

“I had pizza,” she answered as she strolled to the back of the apartment to see what he was working on. 

He turned to her as she stood in the doorway. “Rin, I need to talk to you about something.” 

“What?” she asked, her brow wrinkling. She had a cut along her eyebrow, which he was not surprised with.

“Remember when you saw a woman in my bed and you said you thought you knew her?” he inquired. His voice stayed steady. He did not want her to think he was accusing her of anything. He knew Rin. If she did say something, it was an accident, probably blurted out as she was telling their parents about her day.

Rin swallowed hard. She had been trying her best to forget about all of that. She figured if she thought about it, she might accidentally tell what she knew and they had the pact to not tell. She did not want to get anyone in trouble. 

“Yeah,” she answered hesitantly.

“Did you tell anyone about her?” he asked. 

Rin swallowed hard again. She tried to remain calm, but it was rather difficult, especially when it felt like her heart was in her throat. How did her big brother know she had told? It was supposed to be a secret. Her friends always kept their secrets.

“Who did you tell Rin?” Sesshomaru inquired since he knew the answer to his previous question. He felt like he knew the answer to that question, too.

Rin cracked like an egg, throwing her hands up in surrender. “I only told Kaede! Well, Kaede, Kohaku, and Shippo, but we all promised not to tell anyone!” She thought he already knew and she was well aware to never lie to him if he knew the truth. 

“You told your friends?” he asked. 

“Yeah,” she answered.

“You didn’t tell Father?” 

She made a face. “No.” Why would she tell their father something like that? She would get her big brother into so much trouble and she was never looking to do that…well, with Sesshomaru anyway. Inuyasha was another story, but even with him, she would never get him into serious trouble. What Sesshomaru was doing would go beyond serious trouble and she knew that, so she had kept her mouth shut. 

“Then how did he know?” Sesshomaru wondered out loud. It did not make any sense.

Rin yelped. “Father knows about you and Kikyo!” Then, she slapped her hands over her mouth, like she should not have said that. 

Sesshomaru waved the matter off. “It’s none of your concern. Wait, how did you know her name was Kikyo?”

“That’s Kaede’s big sister,” Rin answered.

 _The world can’t possibly be that small_ , Sesshomaru thought. But, then he remembered Kikyo looking at the picture he had of Rin and her best friend. He had assumed she was looking at his sister, possibly wondering why he had a picture of a human in his home, but perhaps she was looking at more. He wondered why she did not mention knowing his sister, not that it had a chance to come up in a conversation. 

“Wait, you said you told Kaede?” Sesshomaru asked. He could feel a headache coming on, as this could easily blow up into something so much worse.

“Yes, but it’s okay because we all promised not to tell,” Rin replied. 

The dog demon was not too sure if he could trust Rin’s friends, but he believed her. He doubted they were the ones who spilled the beans anyway. They did not have anything to gain from it, unless of course they told someone who told someone and so on and so forth. He was aware Kohaku was the brother of Inuyasha’s friend, so he could have brought the subject up, but did Kohaku know Kikyo to even want to say anything? And what did Rin’s friends care anyway?

“Your friends, they know Kikyo, too?” Sesshomaru inquired.

Rin nodded. “Yes, she’s Kaede’s sister, after all. She’s very nice. She always buys us things if we go somewhere with her. She also used to ride the train with us all of the time to show us how to get places. She always wanted to make sure we made it to where we had go and knew how to get home without having to rely on anyone else.” 

Sesshomaru fought down a smile. His sister liked her independence and it was good to know Kikyo helped her gain some of that by showing her how to use public transportation, even if he despised it. “So, you all like her then?” he asked. He doubted they would slander her name if they liked her.

“Yes, she’s very nice,” she repeated and squinted as she stared at him. “Big brother… why are you doing this?”

“What?” he inquired.

“Why are you dating Kikyo? You do know she’s married, right? I mean, Kaede says her husband’s mean and it’s only a matter of time before Kikyo turns him into a pile of dust, but still, that doesn’t make this right. Right?”

He sighed. He would probably have an easier time explaining it to her than their parents, but now he felt like he did not have the answer. “Rin, it’s a complicated issue.”

“Is she going to get a divorce? Are you going to marry her then?” the preteen inquired, her eyes sparkling with the idea of her brother and Kikyo being husband and wife. It would be so awesome.

“Rin, it’s a complicated issue,” he repeated.

Rin only rubbed the top of her head. She decided not to question things because she knew better than to pry into her big brother’s business. She hoped Kikyo would get a divorce and then marry her big brother. It would be nice to have someone like Kikyo in her family. Plus, she would be related to Kaede if that happened. She hoped everything worked out, especially if Kikyo made Sesshomaru happy.

“You deserve to be happy, brother,” Rin said, in case Sesshomaru did not know. Of course, there were times when she thought he did not know. Most of the time, it seemed like Sesshomaru just sort of existed without emotions and she did not think that was good.

“I know,” he answered, but she did not look convinced. He put that out of his mind as he had other things to worry about.

Sesshomaru still had the mystery of who could have possibly told his parents about Kikyo. Rin and her friends seemed to like Kikyo too much to share information that might do her some kind of harm. So, who was there that might know and tell his father?

-8-8-8-8-

Naraku set up his plan to teach Kikyo a lesson as to never betray him. He had already put things in motion to make that mutt’s life hell by making a little phone call to the bastard’s father and telling him a few things about Sesshomaru’s personal life. He knew from gossip around the office that making that call would do a lot of damage because Sesshomaru’s father apparently did not take any mess from anyone, offspring included. Sesshomaru would also have his other surprise to deal with soon enough as far as he knew. This would be grand fireworks when he got to watch everything explode in Sesshomaru’s face.

Now, he had to start training his wife properly. His first move was to leave her with nothing and force her to come crawling to him on her hands and knees. He would be the only thing that she had left when he was done and she would understand he was all she should ever want or need. He would take everything that she held dear, but even better than that. He would make everything she held dear abandoned her, so she could understand she was worthless unless he said otherwise. The first thing he would take from her was her family.

He knew how important family was to Kikyo and it had been hard wrestling her away from it the first time. In the end, he had to make it seem like the move was the best thing for his career, which was always a lie as he could have excelled in any firm. She would not fall for that now, especially when she brought up separating on quite a few different occasions, and it would not be what he wanted. He needed her family to walk away from her, not watch her leave. He needed her on her knees as she gazed at the backs of those leaving her behind like the trash she was.

Kikyo did not seem to notice Naraku scheming against her. It was more than likely because he was always plotting against her, so there was no real change in his behavior. He also did not let onto the fact he knew who she was talking to on her phone most of the time or who she was going out with when she left the apartment and did not come back in until late at night. She would pay eventually.

-*-(New day)-*-

Kikyo made her way to Sesshomaru’s apartment as she did very often, as Naraku kept himself busy most days. She even had a key to Sesshomaru’s place. She entered with groceries, planning to make dinner for them. She found him in his studio. She embraced him from behind.

“How was your day, Sessho?” Kikyo inquired while kissing his cheek.

“The same as always,” the dog demon replied while turning around to give her a proper kiss. 

Sesshomaru pulled Kikyo down into his lap and kissed her deeply. She returned the passionate embrace while wrapping her arms around his neck. His hands worked their way to her thighs, caressing with the promise of more eventually.

“Are you staying for the weekend?” he inquired when the kiss was done.

“Would you like me to stay for the weekend?” she countered, even though she knew the answer to that.

Sesshomaru would like nothing more than for her to be able to stay the weekend. He knew that fool Naraku had plans to leave town again for whatever reasons. Kikyo had been the one that informed him of that not too long ago. She was not sure why her husband was leaving town again and she really did not care. She was glad for the excuse to stay with Sesshomaru.

“You’re going to stay the weekend,” the platinum-haired male pretended to order her.

She gave him a coy smile. “We’ll see. I’m going to fix us dinner, all right?”

“Human food,” he groaned.

Kikyo smiled a bit. She believed he was complaining to complain and to maintain his image. She crawled off of his lap, much to his dismay, and exited the room. He turned his attention back to his work. He had to whole weekend to focus on her, but now only had a limited amount of time to devote his painting. 

He considered telling her about what happened with his father last week. He did not see how it was any of her concern and thought it might worry her, so he decided against telling her. The fact that he was cut off from his family for the moment because he was dating her was not something he felt he should burden her with. The idea that their affair was now between more than just the two of them was also something he did not think she should trouble her mind over. She had her own problems, after all. 

She actually had not told him that her sisters knew about them. She did not see how that was any of his concern. It was not like he would care about her sisters judging them over it or the fact that her older sister still was not speaking to her because of it. It was her problem and she would deal with it on her own. When he thought of her having problems, he just considered how she had to deal with Naraku on the daily basis.

They had a civil dinner as usual. They discussed going to out tomorrow. They were not sure where to go, though. They had gone through most of the museums that interested them and the same could be said of theatrical productions. There were no concerts that either could think of that they would like to see. They supposed they would just figure it out tomorrow rather than allowing it to weigh on them that night.

They retired for the night after listening to some music and doing some sketching. They spent that night forgetting they had angered so many people with their relationship. The only thing that mattered to them was each other.

-*-(New day)-*-

Naraku sat at his desk at work, but he was not doing something work-related. Work was actually working for him now while screwing over that stupid dog demon. He had time to focus on other pursuits. He had a couple of manila envelopes on his desk. He opened one and pulled out the high quality photographs that were inside. There were quite a few photos, but he should have guessed as much since they spanned a weekend. 

“Not much here,” he muttered to himself as he went through the first few. Rather dull shots, which he sort of expected. He then stopped and his jaw dropped open. He flipped the photo to look at it from every angle that he could. “He can make her do that?” he mumbled in disbelief. Even back when she liked him, she never did anything like that for him.

That one shocking picture was not the end of the tale. He had expected some racy photos, but not quite so many. He felt his fury rise, to the point where he gnashed his teeth at the pictures for a moment, but he kept it all in check to a degree. He would get his revenge, so there was no need to get angry, he reminded himself. He had to set the wheels in motion and then wait for the smoke, even though he had already done that in a way. It was amazing what one phone call could do. Now, he was going to see what some unidentified mail could do.

He separated the pictures between the ones he felt served his purposes and the ones that did nothing at all. Once he had two piles and no more pictures, he grabbed the pile he knew would cause an uproar and put them into another manila envelope. He closed that envelope and put it off to the side. 

The hanyou then turned his attention the other full envelope and opened it. He flipped through those and nodded. Those should do nicely. He went into his desk drawer and pulled out some other photos. He found a couple of useful pictures there and tossed them into the full manila envelope. It was time for the next part of his plan. 

He wished he could see the expressions that would be on the faces of the people he hated the most, but he supposed one could not have everything. At least in the end he would get everything he believed he deserved and those fools would get what they deserved. That was the important thing. 

“They will all rue the day they looked down on me,” he grumbled.

-*-(New day)-*-

Kaede trotted into her home while flipping through the mail. She loved picking up the mail, mostly because she liked hoping for mail for her. She rarely got mail, but it was great to hope. She saw there was just stuff for Midoriko, as usual. And then she came to a manila envelope. Oh, it was addressed to both her and Midoriko.

“Cool,” Kaede practically cooed.

She entered the apartment and hollered for her sister. Midoriko sighed and scolded Kaede for acting like she was raised in a barn. She did go to see what all the noise was about, though, so not the best way for Kaede to learn the lesson.

“Look, we got mail!” Kaede grinned, holding up the envelope like it was a prize.

“We get mail everyday,” Midoriko pointed out.

“No, it’s addressed to both of us. See,” Kaede said as she showed her big sister the names on the envelope.

“Oh.”

“Can I open it?” Kaede pled.

“Feel free,” Midoriko replied, smiling a bit because of her sister’s enthusiasm.

Kaede grinned even more. It seemed like such an adult thing to get mail. She put the rest of the mail down and opened up the envelope. She yanked out the contents and they both looked to see what they got. Kaede yelped while Midoriko quickly covered her baby sister’s eyes and took the items from her.

They had been sent photographs, but not any regular photographs. They were pornographic from what she could tell from the top picture and to make it even worse, the pictures involved their sister. Midoriko could hardly believe her eyes.

“Kaede, go start your homework,” Midoriko ordered in a calm tone.

The preteen nodded and did not argue. She understood the reason for the command and she did not want to see any other pictures either. She trotted off to her bedroom while Midoriko steeled herself to flip through the rest of the photos.

Midoriko probably could not scowl any deeper than she was doing as she went through the pictures, each more disturbing than the last, even though the first one had been the worst. She already guessed the sick bastard who dared to send her such material and address it to both her and her baby sister, but she considered there might be another sick bastard who might have done it.

Her first guess was that hanyou scum her sister married. She was willing to bet he would do something so distasteful and disgusting. But, if it was him, then that meant he knew about Kikyo and that dog demon, which would mean Kikyo was probably in danger. No one with demon blood would stand idly by while his wife committed such lewd acts with another demon. And knowing Naraku, he would go above and beyond stupid to get back at Kikyo and Sesshomaru for what they were doing.

“I’ll destroy that bastard if he tries anything,” Midoriko growled. Of course, it might not be the half-breed.

Her next guess was the dog demon himself. She did not know much about Sesshomaru, but she did not have the highest opinion of demons. Maybe he was just as much a bastard as Naraku was and the package was his way of being an asshole. As if he was saying, “Look at what I can make your sister do. Your sister enjoys being my whore.”

Midoriko was not sure what she should do. She was so infuriated with her sister for putting herself in such a spot. She wanted to leave her sister to the grave she had dug herself in, but there was chance that Kikyo was in danger if Naraku knew about the affair. There was also the chance that Kikyo was being used if Sesshomaru was behind sending those inappropriate photos.

The eldest sister then figured Kikyo should be able to take care of herself. She was the one that got herself in that mess, so she should be the one to get herself out. If she wanted to be some demon’s whore, then that was on her, Midoriko decided. With that out of the way, she went to the kitchen and burned the pictures on the stove.

-8-8-8-8-

Seesshomaru went to his car after work, looking to go home. He noticed a manila envelope pinned to his windshield with the wiper, like a traffic ticket. He pulled the thing off of his car and he recognized the scent on it. He frowned, but took the envelope with him into the car. He threw it in the back seat and took off toward him home.

The dog demon almost forgot about the envelope by the time he made it to his apartment. He happened to glance at it as he was getting out, so he grabbed the envelope and went upstairs. He sighed and tossed the package onto the kitchen counter. He poured himself a glass of wine to help ease away the annoyance of the day.

He felt the backlash of the worm that had been found on his computer that had been stealing company money. He was under investigation. He was confident he would be exonerated. After all, Totosai did not even think he did it and was more investigating who framed Sesshomaru rather than the demon dog himself. He believed he knew who set him up, but the coward had been dodging him since the incident occurred. He hoped the fool did not think that just avoiding him would do any good. While he might not be able to confront the moronic bastard face to face at the moment, he could gather evidence to show his innocence and he was doing that. He still had plans to tear the fool’s intestines out for playing games with him and trying to taint his name.

Speaking of games, he wondered what the hell the envelope was about. He walked over to the packet and picked it up. He placed his glass of wine down and opened the package. He pulled out the contents and noticed that there was a note attached to what appeared to be a group of photos. The note begged the question, “Do you think you’re the first person to catch her eye?”

The platinum-haired male frowned at the question. He then turned his attention to the pictures. The first few pictures were small, album-sized photos and they caused him to growl. The first one was of Kikyo sitting with his little brother, Inuyasha. She was smiling at that simpleton. The next picture was not much better; she was petting Inuyasha’s ears while he was pouting.

The next set of pictures was different. It seemed the first set of pictures was taken by a friend, but the next set seemed professional. They were taken at a distance and they also seemed more recent than the other set. They showed Inuyasha with a raven-haired female that looked very much like Kikyo. Sesshomaru became so enraged that he crumbled the photos in his hands.

“That bitch is dead,” Sesshomaru quietly decided. No one made a fool out of him as she had. And here it was he had been ready to give her everything. He had been willing to lose everything for her. Well, he would correct his mistake and teach her not to play with him.

-8-8-8-8- 

Next time: things just get worse.


	14. Things Fall Apart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

14: Things Fall Apart 

Sesshomaru cracked knuckles as he strolled through the office. He went right to Naraku’s office, only to find the hanyou was not there, again. When he caught up to that slimy bastard he would tear into him, gouge huge chunks from that half-breed’s hide, but for the moment, he had other things on his mind. 

The dog demon went to his office and thought about how he was going to destroy Kikyo. He figured Naraku sending him those photos of Kikyo with Inuyasha were a plot of some kind, but that did not stop his anger. A tornado of rage stormed through his stomach, twisting his guts. He was not going to let that bitch take advantage of him.

He knew Naraku sent him the photos because his rotten scent was all over them. It was too good for the hanyou when he learned that Sesshomaru was related to Inuyasha. For Naraku, that was such a great coincidence and seemed like the icing on the cake for his plans, especially when he made a few inquiries and learned Sesshomaru hated Inuyasha with a passion. He remembered seeing Inuyasha in some of Kikyo’s personal photos, which was where he got the album pictures. The others were from a private investigator, as were the ones that went to Midoriko. Naraku was still patting himself on the back over these moves.

Sesshomaru fumed in his office and waited for noon or Naraku’s return, whichever came first. Noon happened to be the one that came first. He quietly wondered where the hanyou was hiding out as he exited the office for his usual lunch date. It was not going to go as it usually did.

He moved like a ghost as he entered the museum, where he knew Kikyo would be waiting for him. She seemed to sense him, he noted, but she was not fast enough for him. As she turned, he was on her. He had his claws around her neck, which wrenched a gasp from her throat. Her eyes went wide and her body tensed.

“Sessho…” Kikyo said in a quiet, shocked tone. Why was he attacking her? What was going on?

“Do not call me that, woman. Now, do you think that you can make a fool of me?” he inquired in an emotionless tone, glaring down his nose at her.

Kikyo did her best to remain calm. She could not show fear, could not feel fear around a dog demon. She did not know what was going on, but she refused to give anyway, even Sesshomaru, the satisfaction in changing her demeanor. She would also not go down easy if this was indeed an attack.

“What do you mean?” she countered, eyes sharp. It seemed he was serious, not that she expected anything less. Why was he serious? Why did he want to hurt her?

“You’re nothing more than a little whore, aren’t you? You play hard to get and act so innocent, but you actually enjoy the attention. You want to be chased, don’t you?” he asked, adding a little pressure to her neck. He could feel her pulse under his fingertips. There was a spike in her heart rate for a moment, but it settled to normal.

“Sessho…” Kikyo choked out the name, feeling a thousand needles pierce her chest and find a home in her heart. She could not believe his words or the pain they caused.

“Don’t,” he growled and tightened his grip on her.

“Why are you doing this?” she begged, unable to keep a quiver from her voice. How could he do this to her after everything she did for him, what she felt for him? Had she been wrong? The hand around her throat said yes. She was tempted to grab him and give him a shocking dose of spiritual power to get him off of her, but she did not want to hurt him. Yet.

“Do you think that you can toy with me, woman? Do you think I won’t snap your neck for doing such foolishness?” he demanded, a snarl curling his top lip.

“What have I done?” she asked.

He growled down at her. “You’ll continue to play so innocent? As if you have not been with other men, but you pretend your vows mean so much?” She had acted like it was such a big deal before, but obviously her vows were a joke and the pretense had to be some sick game she enjoyed.

How dare he! Her word had been all she had left and she tossed it aside for him, because of her damned feelings for him! “What are you talking about?” she demanded, fury cutting into her tone. She could not believe he questioned her virtue, made up some history about her to make her even less than what most thought of her already.

“I am no one’s fool,” he snarled.

Sesshomaru wanted tear her head off of her shoulder, but something held him back. Something inside of him refused to harm her. She was his angel, even now. But, he refused to listen to that voice and countered it with his own.

She was no angel, he reminded himself. She was a whore. She was someone who lied to him. She was like that disgusting husband of hers. She was nothing more than a distrustful wench and he should treat her like a whore.

“How does your bastard husband treat you, woman? Does he treat you just like this? Do you enjoy it?” Sesshomaru inquired in a low tone. It should have satisfied his inner demon to have his hand on her throat, to be one move away from destroying her, but he felt… he was not sure what he felt and he did not want to think about it.

“Stop acting like a beast,” she stated, still calm, as if perfectly confident in herself or the fact that he would not hurt her. He wanted to prove her wrong, but his hand refused.

“Watch whom you address, woman. Do you think I have any qualms with tearing your throat out with my claws?”

“Do you think I would allow that, demon?” she countered. 

Sesshomaru snarled. He wanted so badly to yank all of the meat out of her neck with his bare hand, let her blood ooze down his fingers, and watch her lifeless body fall to the floor. He had never been so infuriated in all of his life. He never despised anyone as thoroughly as he did with her. His grip tightened on her just as he thought about all of that and he thought about how much he actually had been beginning to feel for her. 

And just as he believed he would be able to snap her neck, he found he could not. He stared down at her and some part of him still saw her as his angel. He growled in anger, showing off his fangs. 

Kikyo did not show it in her face, but she was nervous. She was upset, of course, but she was nervous, too. If Sesshomaru did do what he threatened, could she react quick enough to avoid having her throat ripped out? Could she muster up the strength to shock him with her spiritual energy? A part of her told her of course she could, but another part of her believed she could not, would not hurt him, which she thought was ridiculous.

He was a demon threatening her life. Kikyo figured she should be able to reduce him to a pile of dust as easily as she could breathe the air, but he was not any demon. He was the demon who made her feel safe, relaxed, and special when he held her. He was the demon who she allowed to touch her in almost any manner he wished. He was the demon she broke her vows for, took a risk for. He was the demon who she felt strongly for, but refused to consider she loved him.

Sesshomaru could tell she was anxious, maybe even frightened. He could smell the change in her and feel it in the pulse that was right underneath his fingers. Part of him dared feel like pure scum for what he was doing to her, for how he was making her feel, but then again, she deserved it. She was the one trying to toy with him, after all. 

“If I ever see you again, woman, I will kill you,” the dog demon vowed and he turned on his heel, hair flowing with his body. 

Sesshomaru walked away as if what had just happened was normal, even though he was conflicted on it. Part of him wanted nothing more than to render her limb from limb, but another part wanted to go back and embrace, hold her, breathe in her wonderful scent, and never let her go. Part of him believed none of it was true and that she was still his angel. In the end, all he could do was walk away because he would not come to a conclusion as to what to do with her.

Kikyo felt like her knees were too weak to support her as she watched Sesshomaru walk away, walk out of her life. She fell to the floor and something inside of her cracked, splintered all through her. She felt something she had not felt in a long time, she felt the urge to cry. She wanted to weep, to call after him, to beg him not to leave her, but she did not do any of that. She had her dignity.

Besides, how would it look for her to call after a demon who put his hands on her? She was not so desperate, even though her heart wailed against the injustice of it all. Did she attract these horrible demons? Why did she let them treat her this way? She took a deep breath. No, she did not let them treat her anyway. 

She steeled herself after a few moments. She was stronger than what she displayed, she reminded herself. She was stronger than that and then she could sense something was wrong. She touched her cheek. As it turned out, she did do one thing that she wanted to do. She was actually crying.

“Why?” she asked the air. Why had Sesshomaru acted that way? Why would he not hear her out? Why would she cry over him?

She had never cried over a guy before. No man had ever been worth her tears. Sesshomaru was different. He meant so much to her and now he had just walked out of her life while thinking the worst of her and she did not even know why. She almost wished he had killed her to avoid feeling the agony that she was currently in. Better still, he should have talked to her, helped her understand why he was upset, and then she could have explained to him why he was wrong. 

When had they ever had an actual conversation about feelings and emotions, though? Probably the first time she fell into bed with him. Other than that, it was all art theory and pretension. Their whole existence with each other was fluff and filler. Still, there felt like a hole in her heart, torn open by Sesshomaru’s claws, poisoned her system, and she might never stop hurting.

“No, it will stop. Or at least fade into the background. It will be all right,” she promised herself in an attempt to pull herself together.

She tried to force herself to stop crying as she exited the museum. She did not know where she was going, but she knew she had to get out of there. She wiped her eyes, but her tears continued to fall and her insides felt like they were being shredded bit by bit. She could not believe the pain she was in from a man. She knew she felt strongly for him, but she had not expected such excruciating pain with him leaving her.

Why had all of this happened? Why had Sesshomaru worked his way into her heart only to betray her and destroy her? What happened? She wished she had some answers and she doubted she could call him to get them, at least, not right now.

She was about to ask herself what she was going to do, but she knew the answer to that. She would go on. She would live. It was not the end of the world. If her parents dying had not been the end of the world, being dumped by her lover was not either. She would get through this. It would take time, but she would get through this.

“Day by day,” she told herself as she kept moving.

-8-8-8-8-

Sesshomaru felt conflicted as he dropped onto his sofa, even though he did not feel like being home. She was all over his apartment, haunting him. He was bothered by not being able to tear Kikyo apart, but he was pleased he had not done. He could feel in his bones, it would have bothered him more to have seriously harmed Kikyo than it bothered him for his hand stilling.

He decided to put her out his head and she needed to consider herself lucky she was still alive, he figured. He had other things to keep him busy and not think about her. He also had a reason to get himself out of the apartment. He would focus on finding evidence Naraku was the one who framed him with embezzling the agency’s money. He supposed he would also have to informed his father that the older demon was right in some way when he told Sesshomaru that he should leave Kikyo be.

The thought of talking to his father made Sesshomaru growl as he got into his car. He would loathe having that conversation. His father was a smug demon and would not let things go when someone had to admit he was right. He would go on about it until Sesshomaru wanted to rip the older demon’s chest open, which, to be fair, would be right after Sesshomaru spoke with his father anyway. But, it would not stop after one conversation. Occasionally, his father would bring the subject up out of the blue for no reason, as if he only wanted to annoy Sesshomaru and prove the younger demon was not as wise as he pretended to be. It would be one way for his father to remind everyone who was the alpha demon of their household.

No, Sesshomaru shook his head. He was not going to stand for that. He would not let that demon talk down to him as if he was some little pup who did not know anything. To avoid all of the annoying banter his father would throw at him, he might as well not tell the older demon what happened. His father would find out eventually no matter what, but he would not be the one to tell him.

“It’s none of his business, anyway,” Sesshomaru decided. Of course, he already knew his father would dub him a coward for not being able to tell him, but Sesshomaru truly believed it was his life. None of this was his father’s business, not the relationship before or how things fell apart.

Sesshomaru went back to work and wondered if that hanyou bastard was around. He sniffed around for him and caught the putrid scent of Naraku, but it was an old smell. It was almost as if the half-breed did not even go to work anymore, but other people claimed to see him around. It seemed Sesshomaru was the only one who had not seen the half-demon. It was for the best.

The golden-eyed male did not care that Naraku was not around anymore. He would get his proof on the hanyou other ways. He wanted to confront Naraku face to face because that was the kind of man he was. Then, he wanted to punish Naraku for interfering in his life and trying to disrupt his world.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo sat in a park, ignoring the chill around her. She did not want to go home and she did not know what to do. She finally managed to cease her tears, but that did not help much. She still felt like her insides had been through a shredder. She stared at her cell phone.

She had been trying so hard to call her older sister. She really needed a shoulder, but Midoriko still was not taking her calls. Being ignored by her big sister only killed her all the more. She wanted to curl up into a ball and melt, if only to stop feeling like her flesh was being peeled like string cheese. She needed something. She was not sure what she needed, but she was certain her sisters could provide it.

The raven-haired female picked herself up from the bench and started toward the nearest bus or subway. She was going to her sisters, even though the still functioning, rational part of her brain swore that was a mistake. She was not listening to that because she was in too much pain. She just wanted the ache to go away and she only knew one way to make that happen.

Kikyo took the train to her sisters’ apartment. She dragged herself up to the apartment and knocked on the door, hoping they would let her in. She could hear someone come to the door, but she guessed it was Midoriko since the door did not open nor did the person inquire who was it.

“Big sister, please don’t be this way anymore,” Kikyo pled through the door. It was a whine, she knew. She could hear it in her voice, but she did not care. She should be able to whine to her older sister every now and then.

“Go away,” Midoriko ordered.

“Please,” the middle sister begged, resting her forehead against the door. “Please.”

“We don’t want anything to do with you anymore. Since you know everything, solve your own problems.”

“I don’t know everything,” Kikyo replied, leaning against the door for support. Tears stung her eyes. This was the moment she lost everything, was it not? She never imagined she could feel like that twice in one lifetime.

“You pretend to. Go on your way.”

“Big sister, please. I really would like to talk to you.”

“Leave.”

Kikyo let out a choked sob as she could hear her sister walking away from the door. “Sister!” she cried out, but she was ignored.

The usually strong woman felt so weak now. She felt so abandoned and she dropped to the floor. She cried there as if she was a little baby, rubbing her eyes, but not wiping away her tears. She just wanted her sisters back to her right now. Was that too much to ask?

Kikyo wondered why things were going so wrong. Why had the world imploded in on her? What had she done? She had broken her wedding vows, a voice in her head pointed out. That was the problem. She had broken her word and she had a distasteful affair with a demon. She had done the wrong thing, enjoyed doing the wrong thing. She was just getting what she deserved.

Once that thought entered her mind, Kikyo forced herself to stop crying. She did not have a reason to cry anymore in her opinion. It was all on her. She brought everything on herself. All right, she conceded. She might as well go home now.

Midoriko watched her sister walk away through the peephole in the door. She had heard Kikyo crying and the big sister in her made her return to the door. She had been tempted to open it and talk to Kikyo, even though she was disgusted with her sister in so many ways, but she loved her sister and would like to ease the horrible pain Kikyo had to be in. Before she got to open the door, the noise stopped and Kikyo was on the move.

Midoriko began to suspect she had done the wrong thing. After all, her sister had been in the hallway bawling, her usual dignity and pride thrown to the wind, lost in so many tears. The last time Kikyo had cried without physical pain being involved was when they lost their parents. Something completely terrible must have happened to Kikyo, but Midoriko let it go. Her sister needed the tough love.

She also let it go because Kikyo seemed to have her act together when she left. She had stopped crying and she walked strong as she exited the area. It was possible her little sister was going to go and fix whatever it was that tried to break her, which was good. Kikyo had put herself in her current mess, so she needed to get herself out of it.

“Once that is done, we can sit down and try to figure out how to get back on track,” Midoriko decided, even though she was not sure she and Kikyo would ever be on the same page again. How could she trust Kikyo after all of this? How could she trust Kikyo, who tossed her words to the wind twice to gleefully make bad decisions, to set a poor example for Kaede?

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo went to the apartment. She was stunned to find Naraku home. She scowled at him for being there, for existing. She was not in the mood to deal with him, especially since he was smirking deathly evil smirk of his. His eyes danced with wickedness directed right at her.

“What, no greeting for your darling husband?” he inquired, shifting on the sofa, as if making space for her.

“I don’t feel like dealing with you at the moment, so I suggest you don’t start with me,” she warned him.

Naraku chuckled at her. The sound was dark and low, like it could infest her soul. She glared it away, which only made him snicker more. She was so fiery. He was going to thoroughly enjoy tearing that from her, dousing those flames, and showing her how truly weak she really was. He would love watching her crumble as everything she ever had was gone and she was ready to rebuilt in his image.

“You should be a more loving wife, Kikyo, dearest,” Naraku commented as he climbed off the sofa and he took a step toward her.

Kikyo stepped back. There was something different about her husband. She could feel it and it made her stomach churn. She could practically see the evil flowing off of him. She stood her ground, though. She did not fear the man before her. She would never fear the man before her, but she was on guard.

“You seem rather cautious, my dear. What’s wrong? Why do you back away? Is it because you want to leave now? Do you want to run away from me like you have been doing for the past couple of months? Do you want to run from me and go to him? Do you want to go to him, so he can fuck you again?” Naraku inquired without changing his tone at all.

Kikyo’s eyes almost went wide. How did he know? Instead, she gnashed her teeth. How dare he! It took her a moment to realize he knew what she had been doing. He knew whenever she left the apartment, she was going to meet Sesshomaru more than likely. She was not ashamed he was aware of her actions, but she doubted he was fond of the information and she expected him to do something rash. Her fingers twitched, ready to do something should he act.

Kikyo narrowed her gaze on him. “I would be careful of how I speak if I were you.”

“No, if you were me, you wouldn’t be cheating on your spouse, now would you?” he inquired. He wanted her to squirm, but she would not comply. She stood there as if nothing was wrong, except for the way she had her fists balled, which only indicated she might respond in a way that he did not want to. She might very well attack him.

“Is it you wish for me to admit?” she asked since he seemed to be pressing the issue. He could be fishing, but at this point she did not care.

He snorted. “I don’t need you to admit anything. I have photographic proof of what you were doing. Perhaps I should go see your aunt and share the news with her.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” Kikyo growled.

“Perhaps, I already did,” he offered with a frightening smile.

Kikyo frowned. She would not put it past the sick bastard that was her husband to go and show her aunt lewd photos of her behaving rather wantonly with Sesshomaru. That was provided he had the evidence he spoke of. There was always the great chance that he was bluffing.

“You did no such thing,” she stated.

“How can you be so sure?” he asked.

She only frowned deeper. She could not be sure, especially considering how he behaved. He might have had pictures of her doing any number of things with Sesshomaru. She was not sure how her aunt would react, but she doubted it would be good. Her aunt would more than likely cut her off, just like her own sisters. She would be completely alone in the world except for her damned husband. No, she refused to even consider that. 

“You don’t have any photos,” she called his bluff.

“Don’t I? Why don’t you call your sister and ask her about them,” he suggested.

“My sister?” Kikyo echoed and then she gasped under her breath. He must have shown the pictures to her sisters. That would explain Midoriko not even opening the door for her, why she had been turned away even when she was begging, and why her sister did not want anything to do with her anymore. He actually showed them photos of her with Sesshomaru.

“I made sure that the first one they would see was the worst because I figured the bitch would turn the kid’s head away once they caught sight of exactly what was going on. Should I describe the picture to you?” he inquired.

“No,” she replied while making tighter fists. She was so angry right now it did not even register to her mind her nails cut into her palms, blood seeping through her broken skin. She was not even furious with her husband. She was angry with herself for carrying on with that damn dog demon in such a way. After all, where had that gotten her? Nowhere, except branded as a whore by the golden-eyed prick.

“Are you sure? You look like you’re having so much fun in the picture, though. I mean, the way you’re riding him—” he started, but she cut him off.

“Shut up!” she ordered harshly, voice actually rising.

Naraku chuckled. He had gotten to her. He was under her skin. He had cut through the calm and found the emotional center. This was the start of it all. “What’s the matter, Kikyo? Why don’t you go run to him now? Why don’t you go ride him?”

“Shut up,” she said again, in a more menacing and low voice.

“And if I don’t? What will you do? Are you going to leave to your lover’s arms or are you going to turn me into a pile of ashes as you always claim you’ll do?” he asked. His wicked smirk cemented on his face.

“The latter sounds appropriate,” she replied. After all, that filth had taken her sisters from her. They were the most important people in her life. They were the most precious things in all the world to her and he stole them with sneaky pictures. Although, she had to admit she was to blame for putting herself in that situation, but that did not give him the right to tear her away from her family.

“And what will you tell the police?” he inquired to mock her. 

“Why should I have to tell them anything? All I need do is sweep you out of the door when I’m done. If anyone asks, you went on a business trip and never returned. It was not like we had a happy marriage, anyway,” she answered. 

It would seem she had thought out his murder more than he would have imagined. He did not let that faze him. He was in the lead right now. “I see and once I’m gone, you’ll be with your lover?”

Kikyo glanced away for just a moment, but Naraku noticed. The look told him all he needed to know. It would seem his pictures and letter hit their mark. Sesshomaru had deserted Kikyo the moment he thought she was a whore. _Stupid mutt_ , he thought. Of course, he never thought Sesshomaru was too smart in the first place. 

“Is that the plan, Kikyo? You’re to murder me and then be with him?” Naraku pressed only to be annoying now that he knew Sesshomaru left her. He bet she would shatter right in front of him and all he wanted to do was kick her while she was down like a cowering puppy.

“I’ll destroy you and then have peace of mind if nothing else,” she stated. 

It was so tempting to go grab him and never stop filling him with spiritual energy. If she hit him with enough of her power, she would be able to vacuum up his remains later and empty him out into any trashcan of her choosing, which was still a better burial than she believed he deserved. It was not likely the police would ever be able to come up with any trace evidence to even think there had been foul play.

“I doubt you’ll ever have peace of mind again. After all, your sisters know you’re nothing more than a demon’s whore and without them, what do you have, Kikyo? Hmm, just what do you have without your bitchy sisters?” he demanded, growling at her because how dare she have such a thorough plan to kill him? She was not supposed to be like that. Someone changed her. Probably that damn dog.

Kikyo was dumbstruck and the expression on her face made it seem like she had just been shot with a shotgun. He was so right. What did she have without her sisters? She did not have anything without them. Life without them was meaningless. She was nothing more than a waste of air without people to care about her.

Naraku smirked wider when he saw the haunted, fallen look in her chocolate eyes. Since the eyes were the windows to the soul, they gave Naraku a front row seat to watching her break. He witnessed the very essence of Kikyo crack and shatter in that instance as she realized she nothing left in life. He had taken it all and he was not done yet. No, he was not done by far.

Naraku continued to watch in sick satisfaction as Kikyo’s reaction steadily grew worse now she knew her sisters had abandoned her and why they had. She began trembling like a cornered mouse. Her jaw tightened in frustration to the point where it seemed like she would fracture her whole skull from the tension. Her eyes misted over, but she dared not cry in front of Naraku.

And now, the hanyou thought he would spring the next part of his trap. He was, after all, looking to break Kikyo completely, take everything possible from her. Now, he had broken her, but she was not outright devastated as he wished her to be.

“Kikyo, I want a divorce,” Naraku announced. She would truly have nothing and she would be right where he wanted her.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: what is Naraku’s plan with this move? How will Kikyo react to the sudden announcement?


	15. Crumbling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

15: Crumbling 

Naraku informed Kikyo he wanted a divorce. Considering all of the cards he held, such a thing seemed like madness. After all, he was the one who never wanted to let her go and now he demanded a divorce. It was a part of a master plan he had in breaking Kikyo worse than car windows after an accident. 

See, he had already taken her family from her and her lover. He was all that she had left, but he wanted her to even lose him. He wanted her to be all alone in the world. He believed that given time, she would come crawling back to him because he was the only person who would accept her. He was the only person who would take her back after all of this.

Of course, she would try to get back in her sisters’ good graces, but he doubted it would be humanly possible for her to do that. He considered she might try to go back to Sesshomaru, but there was no way that mutt would take her back, not after seeing her cuddled with his half-brother. So, she would have to come back him. Why? Because humans were social animals that needed certain things and he would be the only one willing to provide her with those necessities.

Once she had to come to him, he believed that was when he would have the Kikyo he wanted, or at least the start of the Kikyo he wanted and he could remake her from there. She would be a submissive little doll for him, just like she should be in his opinion. She would be perfect after going through heartache and misery. So, he had to teach her how to be perfect by taking everything from her. And he meant everything.

“You want a divorce?” Kikyo echoed, eyes squinting and forehead furrowed. And to think, she thought she would have to kill him to get away from him. What did he think he was doing?

“Yes, I want a divorce and based on most of the things I have on you, I’m pretty sure the terms will favor me,” Naraku commented, smirk still in place. He had worn the damned smug expression since she entered the apartment and he had started in on her.

“I see,” she practically grunted. He might get everything in a divorce, but she never had much to begin with. She could barely hold a job with him around, always threatening to get her fired, and she never did much with the money. He would waste almost every dime they had on creepy junk he claimed were collector’s items.

“Yes.” Naraku chuckled. He imagined he would get away with almost everything they had in their marriage. She would be left penniless, jobless, and with no one to turn to. It would not take her too long to break and return to him on her hands and knees. The very idea made his nerves shiver with anticipation. It would be glorious.

Kikyo wondered if she should argue with him. She wanted a divorce and she really could care less than nothing about the terms. Hell, he could have whatever the hell he wanted as long as she would be free of him. She did not want him to know that she was in favor of a divorce or he might change his mind.

“You think you’re so clever, don’t you?” Kikyo inquired, giving him a glare for good measure.

“I believe I am. You’re going to regret crossing me, dearest. You’re going to regret cheating on me with that mutt, conspiring against me with that mutt,” Naraku snarled.

Conspiring against him? Kikyo almost laughed. Naraku thought too highly of himself. “I see and you will teach me a lesson by divorcing me?”

“That’s only the start.”

Kikyo did not care what he had planned after the divorce. She would be away from him and would never voluntarily go near him again. Whatever he had in mind, she would not let him get away with it. She was going to get far away from him the moment she had the chance and never look back, unless it was to check over her shoulder to make sure he was not there.

“Now, how about you leave my home,” he ordered.

He did not have to tell her twice. Kikyo turned and left as fast as her feet could carry her without seeming eager for it. She paused at the door, wanting to put up the front of making this hard.

“I need clothes,” she said.

“No, you don’t. You need to leave or I will call the police to have you removed and arrested. Wouldn’t that look nice on your record the next time you try to work at a fancy hospital?” he laughed. 

“You wouldn’t,” she said, just for the effect.

His laughter was downright sinister. “Wouldn’t I? Now, how about you run along before we get to see which one of us is wrong… again?”

Kikyo snorted, but she was gone quickly. She had nowhere to go and only the clothes on her back, but she was free of her husband. It was the only good thing that happened to her that day, but it was huge. She wanted to breathe a sigh of her relief, but there was still the gaping wound of her sisters and Sesshomaru. She was free of one weight, but so many others threatened to crush her.

“No, you will get through this. One day at a time,” she told herself. She was strong enough to get through this. 

Naraku wasted no time getting divorce papers drawn up and called her back to the apartment to sign them. The terms were extremely one-sided. Kikyo would get nothing, no money, no property, nothing. She did not care. The only thing she wanted was the pictures Naraku had of her along with the negatives and they had to bring lawyers into it for that. Considering the fact that she was willing to walk away with nothing, no one understood why Naraku wanted to fight over the photos. She received those, even though she was almost certain he had other copies and would undoubtedly use them if he got any other horrible ideas. But, she did not care. She was free. 

The hanyou watched his former wife leave their home with only the clothes on her back and some clothes in a suitcase along with a few personal items. She did not even have her sketchbook because it was still in Sesshomaru’s possession. She still did not care. At least she was free to go, even though she did not have anywhere to go, especially since hiring the attorney took up what little money she squirreled away with Naraku’s knowledge.

She considered going to her aunt’s house, but she decided against that. She did not want to find out her aunt had seen the pictures that Naraku had. She could hardly believe the pictures. A part of her mind even asked her how she could do such things with Sesshomaru and she answered she was so comfortable around the dog demon she felt like she could do almost anything with him.

“And for that, you were a fool, just as you were a fool to marry Naraku. It is time to learn from the past and from your mistakes,” Kikyo told herself. This was her second chance at life. She would not botch it.

-*-(New day)-*-

Sesshomaru sighed and rubbed his face. He sat at his desk and staring at his computer. He put his hand to his chin and scratched his chin with his index finger. He was somewhat surprised by the information he had, but he was not so surprised.

“This bastard thinks he’s so clever,” the dog demon commented.

Sesshomaru sat back in his chair and focused on his monitor. He had been going through his email, looking for some word from one of the many people he had helping him clear his name from that embezzling nonsense. They gathered things on a certain hanyou bastard and they did a damn good job, not that it was very hard. Naraku was so blatant when people knew what to look for, like the fact that he was stealing money while also framing Sesshomaru. 

“It explains why he stopped working. Did he think no one would ever notice he was stealing the money he pretended I stole?” Sesshomaru decided not to think too hard on it. He printed out everything that was important and placed the papers into a folder.

He collected the folder and turned his computer off. Climbing to his feet, he marched out of his office. He went to the boss’ office, bursting in as he always did. The old man was not doing anything important, as always. Sesshomaru often wondered how the scatterbrained old man built such a vast and glorious company, especially considering what he had just learned.

“Sesshomaru, could you at least make some noise when you walk if you’re not going to knock?” Totosai inquired while nearly jumping out of his skin when he noticed how close the dog demon was to his desk. He could not understand how someone could be so much like his father and the opposite of his father at the same time, but it was annoying.

“I have some information that might mean something to you,” Sesshomaru informed the bug-eyed, old coot and he tossed the folder onto Totosai’s desk.

“What’s this?” the old man asked as he looked down at the plain, beige folder that sat lifelessly on the top of his onyx desk.

“Something you need to see and you need to be more careful of what you hire to work here,” the golden-eyed male commented. 

Totosai only looked on curiously while Sesshomaru exited the office. The dog demon left the building, considering his work to be done for the moment. He did not know where he was going, but he knew he did not want to be in the building anymore. He did not want to be reminded of that damned half-breed and the Hell he almost unleashed.

He had been noticeably more irritable lately and he found himself unable to put up with a lot of the things that happened at the office now. He barked on the secretary for almost no reason at all almost everyday until the woman decided to stop talking to him. He wished everyone else would follow her intelligent example.

He had not seen hide nor hair of Naraku for quite a while, which he supposed was a good thing. He would have beheaded the hanyou with his bare claws without thinking twice on the matter because of how irked he was with everyone else on the planet. He blamed Naraku for his attitude. Although, there was something else, lurking underneath the dog demon’s demeanor, a real cause to his attitude that he refused to acknowledge.

The nobleman wandered by the museum of demon art. He stopped for a moment and glanced up at the building. He took a small breath, sniffling at the air, searching for some hint of _her_. There was nothing there, not even a lingering inkling of her.

He still thought about Kikyo, even though it was almost a month ago where he threatened to kill her if he ever saw her again. He could not believe he said such a thing to his angel. He could not believe he still thought about her.

He did not enjoy thinking about the woman he knew to be little more than a whore and a liar. She had pretended to be so chaste and innocent, but she was nothing but a bitch for half-breeds it seemed. She had a horrible hanyou husband and then he had to see her in those photos with his empty-headed hanyou of a brother.

He hated thinking about her with his brother more than her with her husband. It was not so much that he hated his brother more than he hated Naraku, no. There was no way for that to even be possible. He was not sure why he loathed the idea of Kikyo being with Inuyasha more than being with her husband, but he was guessing it had something to do with the fact that his brother was closer to him.

He shook the thoughts away. He refused to think about her anymore. If she wanted to be a whore and be with his brother, that was their concern, not his. All he knew was that he would slay Kikyo without a thought should he ever see her again because that was what she deserved. She was supposed to die for trying to toy with him. He rushed away from the art museum.

-8-8-8-8-

Totosai looked through all of the papers Sesshomaru left him. He noticed how thorough everything was, which was not surprising considering who put the whole thing together. What Sesshomaru uncovered did not surprise him. He knew as soon as he told the dog demon about discovering the worm on his computer Sesshomaru would hunt down the person who tried to frame him, which Sesshomaru did.

He also knew the nobleman would use as many resources as he could get his hands on to find out the truth, which Sesshomaru had. The dog demon sunk himself into finding who dared cross him and evidence to prove it. Plus, he found evidence of additional theft and where the money “he” embezzled ultimately ended up. He did not have anything else to do. He had thrown Kikyo away, his painting muse had abandoned him, and he was not on speaking terms with his father and stepmother. All he had was hunting for evidence and the occasions when his little sister popped up at his home. He found more than enough on Naraku.

“I guess I shouldn’t have hired him,” Totosai said to the air. He knew it had been a risk, but it was a risk he had been willing to take. He heard Naraku was sneaky and underhanded with ambition wider than all of outside, but his work was supposed to be outstanding. It seemed it was all true.

Totosai called Naraku into his office. He had noticed the hanyou ducking in and out of the building for a while. He knew the half-demon was trying to avoid an angry Sesshomaru more than anything else, so he guessed the hanyou was not as stupid as Sesshomaru seemed to think he was. But, then again, Totosai considered maybe if Naraku was not so stupid, he would have never crossed that crazy dog demon to begin with.

Naraku entered the office without knocking. He stood before Totosai, who put the folder away and eyed the hanyou. He decided he was not going to say anything. He would leave it all as a surprise for the half-breed. It would teach Naraku for trying to make a fool out of him. While he did not consider himself a mean-spirited demon, he was not one to cross either. No one made it to his position and prominence by being a pushover.

“I was just wondering where you’ve been,” Totosai commented to let the half-demon think he had been concerned for him.

“I’ve been here,” Naraku replied, folding his arms across his chest.

“Really? I heard you’ve been in and out of the place for a couple of weeks or so,” the old man said. 

Naraku waved it all off. “A little. I was just looking for inspiration for my accounts.”

Totosai nodded. “That’s good to know. You’re a hardworking guy.” 

“I’m just doing my job.”

“All right then. Carry on,” Totosai dismissed the crimson-eyed hanyou.

Naraku eyed the old man for a moment as if he was suspicious, but he seemed to dismiss that. He reminded himself that Totosai was a crazy old coot, who probably did not even know what year it was, let alone anything relevant to the company. He might have felt sorry for the old codger if he had a heart to feel sympathy.

The hanyou stepped out of the office and went back to his office. He sat at his desk and made some phone calls. He was attempting to find out what was going on with his now ex-wife.

Naraku had lost track of Kikyo almost the day she walked out of the apartment. It was a bit jarring. He had not expected her to be so slippery, but he was not too worried about that. He was certain he would find her again and if not, she would eventually find him. He doubted she could do much on her own. He knew she had not gotten into contact with her family, as he had people keeping tabs on that. She did not have much, if any, money, so she could not make too many moves. None of his people had spotted her at any of the hospitals or clinics in the city, so she was still unemployed. Eventually, she would have to come back to him or die in a filthy alley with nothing to her name. Her dignity would never allow the latter.

He entertained himself by picturing her having a hard time in the world. He actually smiled while imagining her sleeping on the street or under a bridge. If she was homeless, then she would be back to him by the end of the month. Such an experience would teach her a good lesson and then he could get on with his life rather than doing all of this waiting for everything to fall into place.

He still had plans to move Kikyo to the house he had in the country. Once he had her there, he would not let her leave. He would make her the way he wanted her to be, docile and submissive, by any means necessary. He would make it her life to serve him and she would become his world. He continued to smile as he thought about all of the things he was going to do to Kikyo once she came back to him.

“When this all comes together, it will be my greatest victory,” he decided. 

-8-8-8-8- 

Kikyo refused to return to Naraku ever. She was free of him and that was that. Sure, she did not have much money, or a place to stay, and she could not go to her family for any help, but that she was still free. She was on her own and that was a pleasing enough thought for the moment.

The raven-haired woman set herself up in a small studio apartment with very cheap rent. It looked like the cheap place it was, cramped with nosy neighbors, but it was hers and there was no husband there to make it anything less than home. Of course, it did not feel like home, as she was utterly alone and on her own, but it was better than when she was with Naraku.

She had very little money, especially for living in the city, but she did not let that get her down. She was not sure how long she would be unemployed, so she needed to stretch her money out for moment. She also had to consider employment for when it was safe for her to get a job.

She was tempted to run out and find a hospital to work at immediately, but she decided against that. Naraku might still think of her in someway and check to see if she had work, which was what he had been doing. He seemed hell bent on making sure she had nothing in life that she wanted, so she would bide her time to see what his plan was. For the moment, any job would do for her as long as he did not know about it. She would have to go for something he would never think she would do.

She took the first thing that came up, but always kept an eye open for something better. She became a waitress at a nearby diner. It was not her ideal job, of course, but she could have done worse. She took to it with some zeal since she understood that a decent amount of money was going to depend on tips. Her only hope was that no one she knew saw her, but it would seem she continued to have a horrible string of bad luck. At least Naraku would never think to look for her there, but she still wondered what gods she had offended to have her life almost always go wrong.

“The service in this place stinks,” Inuyasha commented as he and Kagome sat down at a table in Kikyo’s section. 

“Stop complaining. They serve good food,” Kagome replied.

“Blah, blah, blah,” was his retort, along with a mocking hand motion.

 _This is not happening_ , Kikyo thought as she caught sight of Inuyasha and her cousin. Of course, they would come in and sit at a table in her section. She decided to grin and bear it, without the grin part anyway. Maybe they would go with it if she acted normal.

“The food better be good,” Inuyasha huffed as Kikyo walked over to the pair. 

“Might I take your order?” Kikyo asked and the voice sounded very too familiar to the duo. They looked up to see who their waitress was and they could not believe their eyes. 

“Kikyo!” they shouted incredulously.

“Yes,” she replied with a sigh. They were going to make this painful, she knew. After all, when had Inuyasha not made an awkward situation worse? 

“What the hell are you doing here?” Inuyasha inquired while Kagome could only nod in agreement with that question.

With a sigh, Kikyo rubbed the bridge of her nose. “It’s a long story.”

“No kidding,” the hanyou muttered. He could not believe what he was seeing, even though he was continuing to look at it. Kikyo was dressed as a waitress. She was a woman who was a fucking doctor dressed as a waitress! _Holy shit_ , his brain screamed.

“You need to tell us this long story,” Kagome insisted with concern in her eyes. There was no way her trained doctor of a cousin was waiting tables unless that bastard she was married to put her up to this. And, if that was the case, she would put a stop to it.

“I can’t really do that right now. I’m working, as you can see,” Kikyo replied. At least it seemed Kagome had not seen any terrible pictures of her.

Inuyasha choked on his words as he tried to yell at her for being a waitress. He did not know where to start and it all caught in his throat. The cousins looked at the hanyou because they knew he was going to scream as soon as he could wrap his head around what was going on. But, it seemed he could not get his mind together enough and he punched the table in anger. 

“Kikyo, do you think you could explain this just a little bit?” Kagome requested. “I mean, this is just plain weird. What are you doing here?”

“Well, let’s just say I’ve gotten divorced,” Kikyo replied.

The hits just kept on coming. Inuyasha’s jaw practically hit the table while Kagome stared with huge brown eyes full of disbelief. They had sworn to the high heavens Kikyo would be married to that demented bastard she was with until the end of time because he openly talked about never letting her go. But, now, she was lucky enough to be divorced, she had not told anyone, and she was working as a waitress. That did not make any sense.

“Okay, so you’re divorced, but that doesn’t explain why you’re working as a waitress,” Kagome pointed out. Kikyo was a doctor, a damn good doctor.

“I’m only doing it for the moment. I want to make sure I won’t be hearing from Naraku and then I’ll move on with my life,” Kikyo tried to assure her younger cousin. She did not want Kagome to go tell anyone she was there. She did not want Naraku to find her.

Kagome seemed perplexed by that answer, squinting as she took in the information. None of this made any sense. It was like being in an alternate universe. “Does Midoriko know about this?” She knew the answer to this, though.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and wondered why the hell Kagome bothered asking such an obvious question. Of course Midoriko did not know. If she did, she would have been at the diner breathing fire on Kikyo to make her get her pale ass in a hospital where she belonged. Like there was any excuse in the world that would make Midoriko be all right with her sister being a waitress when she was a fucking doctor! The fact that this was even happening hurt Inuyasha’s head.

“We are not on speaking terms at the moment,” Kikyo admitted. They probably never would be again. She accepted that. It stung, but it was now life. Once things settled, she would try to get back into Midoriko’s good graces. It would take time, but she hoped it was possible.

“No? Why?” Kagome asked. She was very stunned to hear such a thing considering how close her cousins were. She envied them a great deal of the time, wishing she had sisters, so they could be like Midoriko, Kikyo, and Kaede.

“That is also a long and complicated tale I do not wish to share,” the older female replied.

Kagome sighed. “You’re not telling us much here.”

“There is too much to tell and not enough time,” Kikyo stated.

“So, how long are you going to work here?” Kagome asked once it was clear Kikyo would not spill the beans.

“Not long,” Kikyo answered honestly. She was not going to keep any job long. She did not want to settle in case Naraku sought her out. She would not make things easy for him, would move around for a bit until she understood what it was he was trying to pull.

Kikyo was not as foolish as Naraku seemed to think she was. She knew he had some scheme up his sleeve, which was why he divorced her. She would wait for him to strike and then she was going to take him down, get him out of her life forever. And then, maybe, she could find a nice little hospital to work and heal others as well as herself. She was not sure if her life would ever be as fulfilling as it was when she had Sesshomaru and her sisters, though.

Kikyo hated to think about it, but she doubted she would ever get her sisters back. Not just Midoriko, but Kaede as well, not if they had seen those pictures. Kaede would never respect her. No matter what, their relationships would never be the same, even if they made up.

She was not sure what drove Sesshomaru off the deep end, but she doubted he was coming back either. But then again, she was not too sure she would want him back. She felt strongly for him, even now, but he had called her a whore and threatened to kill her. Hard to believe he and Inuyasha were brothers, which she knew because she knew Rin.

“Are you two going to order or continue to look at me as if I’ve grown several heads since I walked over?” Kikyo asked.

“You growing a bunch of heads would actually make more sense than this,” Inuyasha replied and then grunted as Kagome kicked him in the shin. He glared at her.

“Kikyo, you know if you need help you can come to us and we’ll help,” Kagome said and Inuyasha nodded in agreement.

“I don’t need any help,” Kikyo answered in a rather clipped tone. She was not someone who _needed_ anyone. Okay, maybe on an occasion or two, she needed her sisters, but that was it. She did not need anyone else and she did not need help. She had things well in hand.

“Kikyo, you’re a trained doctor working as a fucking waitress in a shitty diner. How the fuck don’t you need help?” Inuyasha inquired with a raised eyebrow. She might as well be wearing a sign that read “help!” in his opinion.

“As elegant as ever, Inuyasha. I can’t imagine why no one ever lets you make speeches,” Kikyo remarked with a deadpan expression.

“Hey, don’t try to fucking change the subject. This is some serious shit,” Inuyasha pointed out. 

“It is not so serious. I’m fine, you two. I know exactly what I’m doing. Just trust me,” Kikyo ordered them.

“Fine, fine, fine. You know what you’re doing,” Kagome agreed, waving the whole matter off.

Kikyo frowned. She knew what would happen as soon as Kagome left the diner. Her cousin was going to get on the phone with her big sister and that could go two ways. Midoriko could inform Kagome no one wanted anything to do with Kikyo anymore or she would listen to Kagome as the teen blabbed about where Kikyo was and what she was doing, which would lead to Midoriko coming down to the diner to see everything for herself. The latter was what happened.

As soon as she and Inuyasha left, Kagome got on her cell phone to talk to Midoriko. They had small talk for a minute or two because they were cousins and they liked each other. After that, Kagome got to her reason for the call.

“Look, I just wanted to tell you something about Kikyo,” Kagome said with noticeable concern in her voice.

“I could not care less about what new mess my little sister has managed to get herself into,” Midoriko stated calmly. 

“O… kay,” Kagome said in a hesitant tone. She had never heard Midoriko sound so cold toward Kikyo before. “Well, just to let you know then, she’s working at a diner over on Fourth—” she was cut off. 

“Working at a diner?” Midoriko repeated in a bewildered tone. What was her sister doing working in a diner?

“Yeah, she’s a waitress. It was weird.”

“Give me the specific address of this place,” Midoriko answered and Kagome did just that. The call was then ended.

“You’re such a tattletale,” Inuyasha accused Kagome.

“Well, someone has to talk to Kikyo and Midoriko is the best at that,” Kagome defended her actions. It was not like she could force Kikyo to accept help. Midoriko could do that, though.

“She said she knew what she was doing,” the dog hanyou pointed out. 

Kagome scoffed. “And you believed her?”

“Well, no, but still, I know she’d rather do things her way than have you call her sister on her. You shouldn’t get involved,” he argued.

“She’s my cousin,” Kagome pointed out.

“She’s a grown woman,” Inuyasha countered.

She shook her head. “You don’t understand.”

Inuyasha frowned. Whenever Kagome could not win an argument with him, she pulled that “you just don’t understand” line. He did understand Kagome was a busybody. She needed to leave things alone every now and then, especially if Kikyo was involved. Kikyo could handle herself better than most, he was sure of that.

He might not have known Kikyo as long as Kagome, but he knew her pretty well. He knew despite the fact that she looked like a delicate little flower, she was a rather powerful, scary woman who could take care of herself, even if life threw obstacles in her path. Not to say he would not help her if she needed it, but at the moment, he did not think she needed it. He believed she had some kind of plan and he was willing to let her do what she was going to because he respected her. Not that he meant Kagome did not respect Kikyo, but Kagome could not mind her own business.

-8-8-8-8-

Midoriko arrived at the diner that Kagome had been talking about. She looked around, even though she did not expect her cousin to still be around. She knew Kagome was more than likely still out with Inuyasha and there was no way he would patiently wait anywhere for anything ever.

She strolled inside and scanned the place. She frowned at the thought of her sister working in such a place. Years of medical school and clinic work only end up working in a greasy spoon? What would make her sister sink so low? Maybe their cousin was mistaken… or so she hoped. She did not see Kikyo around. She walked up to the counter.

“Excuse me,” she said to the man behind the counter.

“Yes, how can I help a pretty lady such as yourself?” he inquired with a friendly smile.

“I’m looking for someone who might work here. Her name is Kikyo,” Midoriko informed him.

“Oh, that cute little waitress. She just quit out of the blue today,” he told her.

“She quit?” Midoriko echoed. What was her sister playing at?

“Yeah, just out of the blue. She waited one last table and then quit while walking out of the door. She said something like it was an emergency and she was sorry for walking out. She was really polite about it, but still rushed out of here like the place was on fire. Hard to be mad she walked out with the way she seemed really sorry for it, like there really was an emergency she just found out about,” he explained.

“Do you know where I can find her?”

He squinted at her, studying her face. “You know you look a lot like her. You her sister or something?”

“Yes, I’m her older sister. Do you know where I can find her?”

“Can’t say I do,” he answered with a shrug.

Midoriko scowled. She did not have time to play games. Something was amiss and she needed to get to the bottom of it before something happened to her careless younger sister. “She didn’t have to give an address or something when she applied for this job?”

He shrugged. “Not really my department.” 

“Then whom do I speak with? She might be in danger and I need to make sure she’s all right.”

He scratched his chin. “Is this the emergency she was talking about?”

“It could be. So, you can tell me who has that information?” she pressed.

He pointed her in the direction of a woman that might be able to help her. Midoriko went back and forth with the woman to find out Kikyo’s address and won the information through sheer will. In the end, all of her hard work was for naught. The address turned out to be that of Kikyo’s favorite modern art museum. It would seem her sister did not want to be found.

“Fine. Why should I even bother?” Midoriko huffed and she decided to return home. Her anger and frustration were only a front for the true emotions that she felt now, worry and anxiety. What if something happened to her little sister? What if she and Kaede never saw Kikyo again? She would never be able to forgive herself, especially considering her last interaction with Kikyo. “Damn it, why does she do this to us?”

-*-(New day)-*-

Naraku was at his desk at work. He was still trying to get a fix on where Kikyo was, but he could not locate her. It was irksome because now things were not going according to his plan. He had wanted to be gone with Kikyo by now, but she was being difficult. At least no one seemed wise to what he had done. Unfortunately, Sesshomaru had not been busted either. The office was full of fools it seemed. 

His attention was turned from papers as his door burst open. He looked up and saw two uniformed men enter the room. They were police officers from the looks of their outfits. He stood up to demand to know what they were doing, but they beat him in speaking.

“Mister Naraku Onigumo, you’re under arrest,” one of the officers announced.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: it’s time for a physical fight, Sesshomaru versus Naraku.


	16. Mistakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

16: Mistakes

Naraku stared at two police officers who informed him that he was under arrest. He was not sure what it was all about, but he was not about to go with them as they requested, considering all of the crimes he had under his belt. As they moved to place special handcuffs on him because he was a half-demon, he shoved them aside, hard. The officers crashed into the opposite walls and Naraku made his escape out of the room. He did not make it far as Sesshomaru blocked his path.

“Going somewhere?” the nobleman inquired in his usual tone of voice.

“Out of my way, mutt,” Naraku ordered with a powerful glare.

“I believe those gentlemen want you to go with them, worthless half-breed,” Sesshomaru commented. This moment had been a long time coming as far as he was concerned. He would not let idiotic, weak police officers blow this.

Naraku snarled at the insult. He figured now was as good a time as any to rid himself of Sesshomaru. He had already tried to get the mutt fired, but it would seem Totosai did not have the nerve to fire someone who was so blatantly stealing from him as he made it seem the nobleman was. Clearly, he was just going to have to physically take the dog demon down a peg. 

Tentacles sprouted from Naraku’s back and rushed toward Sesshomaru. The platinum-haired male hardly blinked, looking as bored with this whole matter as he did with most other things in life. There was a flash of green light as he waved his hand and then Naraku’s tentacles dropped to the floor, dispatched by Sesshomaru’s energy whip.

“Are you done?” Sesshomaru asked in a detached tone. It was hard to be moved by any of this, especially since that attempt on his life was pathetic at best. Inuyasha put up more of a fight when he was pup than this wretched beast before him.

“Don’t talk down to me,” Naraku ordered as he flung his hand out and it expanded in size. His fingers turned into spikes. There were too many to dodge, taking up too much space, so Sesshomaru was caught. He forced Sesshomaru to the front of the office, knocking over plants and furniture in the waiting area. He pinned the dog demon against the wall. Sesshomaru let out a small grunt and Naraku smirked.

“You need to learn you place, mutt,” Naraku said.

The whole office gasped or stared with slack jaws. They did not think there was a creature alive, save his father, that would best Sesshomaru and yet, there the nobleman was at the mercy of a hanyou. They hoped for Naraku’s sake that he was in as much control of the situation as he seemed to be. If Sesshomaru got free, they were certain the police would be arresting a limbless corpse, if Naraku was lucky.

Naraku slowly advanced on the dog demon as he morphed his other hand into more sharp spikes. He smirked like the arrogant bastard he was and chuckled a bit. He put a spike to Sesshomaru’s throat.

“You should learn to respect your betters, pup. First, you try to steal my account and then my Kikyo. I bet this thing with the police was even set up by you in someway. Whatever the charges, I’ll beat them. I always do. Once I get out, I’m going to retrieve my pet and take her to that house in the country to train her properly, complete with a collar and leash. You’ll never see her again,” Naraku commented.

“Why should I care what you do with your human whore?” Sesshomaru inquired.

In reality, Sesshomaru had been trying his best not to think about Kikyo, but now that Naraku brought her up, she was back in his mind. He wondered what Naraku meant about retrieving his pet and training her properly. Where was Kikyo if not with Naraku? How would this uncouth bastard try to “train” his angel? He did not like the sound of it. It infuriated him to think this abhorrent freak would refer to _his_ Kikyo as a pet and claim he would train her with a collar and leash. What did that sick bastard have in mind for Kikyo?

“That’s right, Kikyo is just a little human whore,” Naraku agreed with a smile. “She’s such a proud, disloyal creature, but she’ll learn better now, especially since she has nothing now.”

“What are you planning to do to Kikyo?” Sesshomaru demanded, blood boiling, even though he should not care about Kikyo. His inner demon flared up, even though every piece of him wanted desperately to not care about her fate. Still, while his rational mind stung from thoughts of her using him, other parts of him were still loyal to the notion she was his angel, to the idea she was _his_. No one would harm something of his.

Naraku laughed again, deep in his throat. He looked around for no real reason. No one was close by, as no one wanted to get caught in the middle of the brawl. The police seemed to still be unconscious in his office. It was just him and the foolish dog.

“I’m only going to train her to be what I want. She’ll never think to stray to a lesser being again. It’ll just be her and me and she’ll be more than happy to do anything I want. I’ve considered making her wear a collar with a tag that proclaims her as my property, but I’m sure I can get her to beg for something more visible than that once I have her right where I want her. I’ll have it tattooed right on her breast and make her kneel by my side whenever she isn’t catering to my every whim. I’ll have her service me in front of others for everyone to know who she belongs to.”

“She would never do anything like that.”

“She will, soon enough. Soon, she’ll only want to please me because I’ll be the only thing she has left in this world. No mutt, no sisters, no family, just me, just like I’ve always wanted it, just like it was always meant to be. My Kikyo pleasing me in any manner I desire. My Kikyo looking at me like the adoring god I am,” Naraku said with glee in his blood red eyes. It was clear he was proud and eager to get to breaking Kikyo.

Sesshomaru bristle at the idea of Kikyo being broken, being this thing’s pet. “Where is she?”

“Well, maybe she’s out with your brother.”

Sesshomaru growled. “Don’t toy with me, half-breed. Where is she?” he demanded once more. It was as if he could feel Naraku was lying to him. It was like he was incapable of the truth, but Sesshomaru would get it from him.

“Don’t worry about her, mutt. I’ll take the best care of her. I’d never leave her.” Naraku smirked and then chuckled deep in his throat.

The dog demon snarled. He would not let such filth harm his angel. He would not allow the grimy half-breed go anywhere, except where he deserved. Naraku was going to jail or he was going to the morgue.

“You think you’re so superior,” Sesshomaru said. He could not understand why the hanyou thought so highly of himself, though. There was no evidence Naraku was superior to anyone, except the fact that he tricked an angel into marrying him and fooled people into liking him. Other than that, Naraku was below average as far as Sesshomaru was concerned.

“That’s why Kikyo is still with me,” Naraku replied.

“Only because she holds stock in those ridiculous wedding vows that she made to man she did not even know, a man who probably didn’t exist. Had she known what you really are, she wouldn’t even spit on you if you were on fire.”

“Oh, but she would make such concessions for you? Face it, dog, she is with the superior one out of the two of us.”

Sesshomaru was done with wasting his time arguing with such a waste of air. He reached up and grabbed onto the arm Naraku used to hold him. The hanyou continued to smirk.

“What are you doing now, dog?” Naraku’s tone haughty, as was the glint in his eyes. He had Sesshomaru right where he wanted him and it was satisfying to watch the dog struggle, try to best him, when it was clear he was the best.

“You should never compare yourself to me. Kikyo is with you because that’s where I left her. You only live because I don’t want to take the time out of my day to destroy you. There are ants on this planet above you,” Sesshomaru stated as the limb in his grip began to blacken.

Naraku noticed what was happening with his arm as it felt like hot daggers shredded his flesh from the inside. The hand holding Sesshomaru disintegrated while the charcoal coloring crept up Naraku’s arm like slowly advancing insects, complete with the sensation of eating his limb. The hanyou could not believe his eyes or the agony of this. Sweat dotted his brow as his nerves burned like acid was poured on them.

“What did you do to me?” Naraku gritted his teeth, attempting to fight away the pain. He tried to pull away, but found it impossible. Even if he got away, the attack was done.

“Put you in your place,” Sesshomaru replied. This was just the start of things.

“I can just regenerate it,” the hanyou boasted, tilting his chin in the air.

Sesshomaru smirked, unable to wait when Naraku found out that was impossible. Naraku’s face shifted from confident to confused to furious as he attempted to restore his dying limb and he found out that he could not. Whatever Sesshomaru had done to his arm prevented it from growing back. Flakes of his arm crumbled off of him, like ashes sprinkling to the floor, while it felt like venom collapsed every vein in the limb.

“You’ll find my poison makes regeneration rather difficult. Not to mention painful if you keep trying. Would you like me to make the other arm match?” the dog demon inquired, holding up one hand and cracking his knuckles.

“I’ll get you for this, mutt,” Naraku vowed through gritted teeth as sweat dripped his forehead from the pain he almost could not bear. His knees threatened to buckle, but he managed to stay on his feet.

“I doubt it. You won’t be seeing the light of day ever again,” Sesshomaru stated as the two police officers charged out of Naraku’s office and tackled the half-breed. There was a satisfying crunch as they bashed him onto the floor.

Sesshomaru stared down at the half-demon with nothing in his golden eyes as the officers cuffed the now one-armed hanyou. They ended up putting the other cuff through his belt loop since there was no way to attach the cuff to his deteriorating limb. The wince that escaped Naraku as the police made sure he was secure made Sesshomaru nod.

He watched and listened as the police read Naraku his rights and then dragged the worthless bastard out of the office with all of their coworkers looking on. Naraku hurled threats about what would happen when he beat these charges, some including Kikyo. Sesshomaru growled at the thought of that filth touching Kikyo ever again. He thought about everything he learned about the damned hanyou while trying to prove he had been framed in embezzling company money. The accusations, things that were probably true, but could not be proven, it sickened him to see what Naraku got to in his spare time. Psychotic did not even begin to cover it.

He thought of all of the lies that bastard had to have told Kikyo to trick her into marrying him. The Kikyo he knew would not have given the real Naraku a passing glance. He doubted Naraku would be able to touch Kikyo now, not with all of the charges he had pending.

In all of the digging he had done to clear his name, Sesshomaru had come across all kinds of things Naraku had in his past and he had it all looked into because he had that kind of power at his fingertips once again. He had not really apologized to his parents over his behavior, but it seemed to be a quiet understanding that he was wrong and he had access to things from his father’s estate once again. There were also his own contacts and people willing to help him just because of his name. With everything he found on Naraku, he actually considered Kikyo might have something on her, too, since he had been so angry with her and he lumped her in with her bastard spouse. She had nothing, though. Nothing wrong anyway.

He had not found any evidence to back his claims of believing she was a whore. She had not even gone to her high school prom from what he could tell. He decided to stop thinking about it. She was out of his life and he was better for it. She was not his problem, even if Naraku went after her. 

Naraku was also out of his life, so everything could go back to normal. He could not believe the boss had hired such a low life. Naraku had not only been stealing from their company, but from the last company he was involved in, too. He managed to steal from most of their clients as well, billing them for all sorts of services he did not provide. It seemed he had ties to organized crime in a number of different ways and he was even wrapped up drugs, seeking money and power in the darkest corners of the world. He was pretty much a dictionary of crime from what Sesshomaru could tell.

-8-8-8-8-

Kaede headed toward the subway station when something odd caught her eyes. She noticed a crossing guard helping small children across the street. Now, it was a common sight around elementary schools, but the strange thing was that the crossing guard appeared to be her sister.

There would be another train, she silently commented. She had to inspect the situation more carefully. She trotted over and saw it was her sister. Her heart leaped into her throat. It was good to see Kikyo, to know she was all right.

“Kikyo!” Kaede called, which caused her sister to turn.

“Kaede?” Kikyo said as she caught sight of her little sister.

“Wow, it is you,” Kaede said, tugging at her book bag strap. She was not sure if she should smile or not. She missed her sister. It had been well over a month since she last heard from her and the last time that she saw Kikyo was when the middle sister and the eldest sister had their falling out. It seemed like a lifetime ago. 

“Yes, it is,” Kikyo replied. She wanted to embrace her little sister. She missed her so much, but she was so certain Kaede hated her now, just like Midoriko.

“How have you been?” the younger female asked awkwardly, eyes shifting around and she squirmed a bit.

“I can’t talk right now, Kaede. I need to focus on this. I wouldn’t want a child getting struck by a vehicle because of my inattentiveness,” Kikyo explained. It was also a way to give her little sister an out. She did not want to make the girl any more uncomfortable than she clearly was. 

“Right. Well, how long you gonna be here?” Kaede kicked at an imaginary rock. She wanted to see Kikyo, but she felt bad for it.

“For a while.” 

“I can wait for you at the pizza shop on the corner.”

“If that is your desire,” Kikyo replied, voice low with emotion. She was a bit stunned her sister wanted to be seen with her.

Kaede trotted off to the pizza shop, had a slice, and waited for Kikyo to show up. Kikyo did not disappoint her. Kikyo showed up and Kaede asked if she was going to get anything. Kikyo shook her head and so they exited the place. They started walking to no place in particular. 

“So, how have you been?” Kaede asked, giving Kikyo a sidelong glance before looking at her feet.

“Fine. And yourself?” Kikyo countered, focusing ahead to avoid pressuring Kaede in any way. 

“Fine, too,” the preteen replied. She was not sure what to say. Part of her did not want to admit she missed Kikyo because of what she had seen and what Kikyo had done, but at the same time, she wanted to say that. She wanted her sister to know she was still wanted.

“School going well?” Kikyo asked. Small talk was murder, but it was better than nothing when it came to her sisters.

“Of course. I’m planning on entering the science fair, as soon as I can think of someway to blow the gym up. Kohaku offered to help,” Kaede answered.

Kikyo smiled a bit to show her amusement. “That’s good. How are you hamsters?” 

Kaede shrugged. “Same as always. I got new hamster balls for them to run around the apartment.”

“I’m sure they appreciate the exercise. Although, I’m sure Midoriko could live without their new toys.” 

“She’s dealing with it. So, what’ve you been up lately and how come you’re working as a crossing guard?” the younger female inquired.

“One must do something with her time,” Kikyo answered, looking aloofly ahead of them. 

“So, you’re doing this?”

“One must do something,” she repeated. There was something in her eyes, something different. Her entire demeanor seemed off, deflated. 

Kaede nodded. Her sister seemed so melancholic to her suddenly. It was such a change from when she used to see Kikyo. She remembered how happy her sister seemed when she would meet up with them for lunch and how her eyes sparkled as she would tell them about things she did with Sesshomaru. Kaede frowned as she thought about the demon and what her sister did with him. 

Kaede had only seen one of the pictures of Kikyo with Sesshomaru, but she could guess the ones that followed that one were just as bad, if not worse considering how angry Midoriko had been. The preteen actually tried to rationalize her anger about the picture, but she could not figure out why it pissed her off so much. She just knew for the split second she had saw that photo she had lost all respect she had for Kikyo, but she could not figure out why. 

“How are things between you and Sesshomaru?” Kaede asked, even though she did not think it was appropriate. Maybe she would not be so upset if Kikyo reaffirmed she loved him, Kaede considered. It should be awesome that her sister and her best friend’s brother were together, but it made her sick and she wanted that feeling to go away.

“It’s not really any of your concern,” Kikyo answered. It was not that she did not want her little sister to know the dog demon had promised to kill her if he saw her again, but she did not want to talk about it. She wanted to forget Sesshomaru. He was the past. She was looking forward to the future.

Kaede frowned a little, even though she knew from her sister’s tone she was not trying to be hurtful. “You’re still seeing him, aren’t you?”

Kikyo’s jaw twitched. “It’s not really any of your concern.”

“Aren’t you going to tell me anything? I haven’t heard from you in over a month. I haven’t seen you longer than that. I thought something happened to you!” Kaede said, balling her hands into tight fists. With the husband that her sister had, she had entertained all sorts of thoughts of Kikyo being chopped up and thrown into a garbage bag.

“As you can see, I’m fine,” Kikyo replied. She would be even more fine once she felt safe enough to get a hospital job and live her life. Saving some lives, healing people, and making them feel better would ease her torment of being alone and forgotten.

“Naraku didn’t find out about the affair, did he?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“What do you mean?” Kaede asked.

“I mean what I say. It doesn’t matter,” she repeated. He had known about the affair and had thankfully released her of her vows. Too bad she could not go to the arms of the man she loved since he now hated her, but she was free of Naraku, so it was still the better end of the situation.

“So, where are you headed now?” the younger sister inquired since she could tell she was not going to get any other information out of Kikyo.

“Nowhere,” the elder woman replied. She had a second job, but she did not have to be there for another two hours.

Kaede continued to try to get information out of Kikyo, but she was not very forthcoming. Kikyo seemed tired to her little sister, as if she had been drained of everything that made her Kikyo. The elder female was exhausted. She was tired of every move she made turning out to be the wrong one.

-8-8-8-8-

Sesshomaru entered his father’s home. He came to pick up Rin because she wanted to stay over at his house for the weekend. It was an impulsive decision, made about a half-hour ago. He did not mind having her over at the last moment and their parents did not mind either, especially since they knew he would force her to do the homework she was trying to avoid by going to his house.

Almost immediately when he stepped in, he noticed something was odd. There was an unfamiliar scent in the house. The scent would not have bothered him, but there was something strangely recognizable to it, even though he knew he had never smelled it before. He decided to find the source of the weird aroma. 

His nose led him to the living room where Inuyasha was playing some video game. There was a girl with him on the sofa and Sesshomaru’s eyes quickly mistook the raven-haired female for Kikyo, but his nose was telling him that was not who she was. Her blood smelled something like Kikyo’s, though. Who was she?

“Inuyasha, who is your friend?” Sesshomaru demanded rather impolitely.

“My friend?” the hanyou echoed with a scrunched up face and then he realized who his older brother meant. “No one you need to know,” he answered with a taunting smirk. He got a kick out of getting on his big brother’s nerves.

“Girl, what is your name?” Sesshomaru inquired.

“Uh…” Kagome drew back a little and hesitated because of the full demon’s tone. What was his problem?

“Don’t tell him nothing,” Inuyasha informed Kagome while keeping his eye on the game he was playing.

Sesshomaru sighed and realized he was not going to get any information acting as he was. “I only ask because you look like someone I know.” He sniffed at the end, driving home his disinterest in her personally.

“I’m Kagome,” she replied.

“Damn it, I told you not to say nothing. You don’t fucking listen,” Inuyasha complained, putting his hand over his face. He was hoping to bother Sesshomaru some more.

Sesshomaru nodded. He could not get over how much she looked like Kikyo and he began to wonder if maybe she was the one in the pictures walking with Inuyasha. The album photos had clearly been Kikyo, but the other shots had not been so obvious and Kagome looked eerily similar to Kikyo. Then there was the fact that Kagome was currently hanging out with Inuyasha.

Another thought entered his mind was that he could smell that Kagome spent a great deal of time with Inuyasha. His scent was all over her, but Sesshomaru had never smelled Inuyasha on Kikyo. Something was wrong and he never stopped to consider something deeper could have been going on.

“Do you happen to know a woman named Kikyo?” the full demon inquired, wanting to get to the bottom of things. It could be nothing, but it could be something.

“She’s my cousin,” Kagome answered with a shrug.

Sesshomaru nodded, hiding the fact that he was a bit taken aback by the information. Kikyo had a cousin who looked so much like her and that hung out with Inuyasha. It was… interesting.

“You look a lot like her,” Sesshomaru managed to comment.

“Yeah, we all sort of look alike,” Kagome replied with a small smile. Even her brother had the misfortune to look like all of them, but he was lucky in a way because it meant he was cute.

“Their mothers were identical twins, so they all came out like almost identical cousins,” Inuyasha added. It kind of freaked him out sometimes because they all did look way too much alike. He was glad for his nose or he would have grabbed the wrong girl on way too many occasions. They probably would have all thought he was a pervert if it was not for his nose.

“Do you know Kikyo?” Kagome asked Sesshomaru, studying him a little.

“I met her in a museum once,” the dog demon answered.

“Yeah, a museum, that’s just her speed. Nice and boring,” Inuyasha commented, shaking his head.

“Don’t talk about Kikyo just because she likes doing something educational with her free time,” Kagome defended her cousin.

“She’s so boring,” Inuyasha groaned as if Kikyo’s hobbies hurt him.

“That’s why she’s always tugging on your ears when you see her because you talk about her so much,” Kagome informed him.

“All of y’all do that dumb shit, even your mom,” Inuyasha huffed. He hated how they rubbed his ears like he was some cute, lost puppy and they all knew he hated it, which was why they did it when he got annoying. And, boy, did he get annoying sometimes.

Sesshomaru could not believe this information. Kagome was Kikyo’s cousin and it seemed that Inuyasha knew the whole family, not just Kikyo. He started having doubts on the things he had done and what he believed. But, he still clung to the idea that maybe, just maybe, Kikyo was exactly what he thought she was. 

“Have you seen Kikyo recently?” Kagome asked Sesshomaru.

“No, why do you ask?” he countered.

“Crazy bitch is M.I.A from her whole family. They wanna make sure she’s not dead in an alley,” Inuyasha replied, pulling back on his game controller as if it would help him in the game.

“Hey!” Kagome huffed and hit the hanyou in the back of the head rather hard for calling her cousin a “crazy bitch.” Inuyasha yelped and fell forward. 

“Aw, damn it! Kagome, you made me lose!” the half-demon complained.

“Well, you should mind you manners!” she huffed, folding her arms across her chest.

“What? I didn’t mean it as an insult!”

“How could ‘crazy bitch’ not be an insult?”

Sesshomaru got the feeling the pair would no longer be useful to him and left them to their arguing. He went by the stairs and waited for Rin to charge down. She did not make him wait long.

“Hey, big brother,” Rin grinned as she charged down the stairs.

“Good evening, Rin,” Sesshomaru replied.

“This is gonna be great. It’s been such a long time since I got to spend the night at your house. We should watch monster movies all night,” Rin suggested as she and her big brother started toward the door.

“Bye, Rin!” Kagome called from the living room.

“Bye, Kagome!” the preteen screamed in a jubilant tone, waving like a crazy person.

Sesshomaru could not believe how uncivil Rin could be. They went out to the car and Rin chucked her bag and skates, which she never went anywhere without, in the back of the car. She hopped in the front seat and fastened her seatbelt. They then took off.

“Rin, you know Inuyasha’s human?” Sesshomaru asked.

“Yeah, that’s his girlfriend. She’s Kaede’s cousin,” Rin answered.

“That’s odd.”

“I guess. It’s funny because Inuyasha used to like Kikyo, but he was way too young for her… well, not way too young, but enough for her to not bother with him. Still, he followed her around like a puppy, getting on her nerves like he always does. And then he met Kagome and kinda forgot he was attracted to Kikyo,” Rin explained.

“He was attracted to Kikyo?” 

“Yeah, he met her one time when he took me to the park and she took Kaede. It was a while ago when we were little.”

“I see.” 

“Speaking of Kikyo… have you seen her, big brother?” Rin asked.

“No. Why?”

“Well, I was talking to Kaede the other day and she said she hasn’t seen Kikyo in a long time. They’re really close, but she hasn’t heard from Kikyo and I know she’s worried. I mean, I know how I would feel if I didn’t hear from you or Inuyasha.”

Sesshomaru nodded. “I haven’t seen her. We’re not really on speaking terms anymore.” He wanted to keep things like that, even though he considered he might have acted hastily with her in regards to the pictures.

“No? I guess that’s good since she’s married. I thought it would’ve been cool if you two got together, though. Me and Kaede would be related and Kikyo’s really nice.” She shrugged and her face fell a little. 

“Rin.” He hated to disappoint her, but she needed to understand sometimes life did not go as planned. He gave her a stern glance. 

“Sorry,” she apologized. She knew he did not want her talking about the subject of Kikyo, but it bothered her. She really wanted them to work out, but she also was not happy Sesshomaru managed to get Kikyo to do the wrong thing.

They went to his apartment and he humored her by watching a couple of monster movies with her. Rin had a thing for zombie movies, but she could only watch then with someone else sitting next to her. He suspected she needed someone to listen to her talk about how corny everything was. Once she fell asleep, Sesshomaru went to his room.

The platinum-haired male went into the drawer by his nightstand and pulled out the photographs of Kikyo and Inuyasha. He looked at the crumbled up pictures of Inuyasha on the street with a female who looked so much like Kikyo. Was it Kagome in actuality? He had been so certain it was Kikyo, but seeing her cousin made him reconsider.

He studied the pictures. The person who seemed so much like Kikyo slowly began losing such aspects. She did not seem to be standing right. Her hair was not right. Even her clothes were not right. He quickly wondered how the hell he even thought that was Kikyo in the first place. 

-8-8-8-8-

Kaede sat up in bed. She could not sleep. It was not uncommon for her to have insomnia lately. She thought it would go away when she finally saw that Kikyo was all right and she had finally gotten the chance to see Kikyo. But, she did not believe everything was all right. 

She did not think her sister was doing as fine as she claimed as they spent two hours together earlier. Kikyo seemed so exhausted, as if she was dragging along. She had not shared much information, which did not help ease Kaede’s mind. Kikyo was usually so open with her, only ever hiding her affair and even that she did not do a great job of as Kaede thought on it. After all, Kikyo spoke of her time with Sesshomaru often and openly, leaving out only romantic moments.

“Maybe she’s in trouble. She might need our help and she doesn’t want to ask for it,” Kaede considered. It was entirely possible. Kikyo could get into her own share of trouble. After all, she was married to Naraku. 

The preteen got out of bed and wandered to Midoriko’s room. The elder female asleep until Kaede flopped down on the bed. Midoriko shot up, looking around in a dazed panic. Once she spotted the girl, she calmed down.

“Oh, Kaede, it’s you. What’s up?” Midoriko asked with a yawn as she focused her attention on her little sister. 

“I couldn’t sleep again,” Kaede answered.

“You want some tea?” 

Kaede ignored the question. “Don’t you miss her? Worry about her? What if something happened to her? Imagine if something happened and we weren’t there for her. It would be terrible.” She sniffled at the idea. It was possible something could happen and they would never know, unless it made the news.

“This is what she has chosen. This is what she wanted. Don’t let it bother you,” Midoriko said to comfort her baby sister.

“What if she’s in trouble?” the girl asked, holding back tears. She had not told Midoriko she saw Kikyo. She was not sure how the eldest would react and she did not think she would be able to deal with any negativity right now. She was so worried about Kikyo. The middle sister had seemed so out of it and down. It did not help matters Kaede did not know Kikyo was divorced since Kikyo never brought it up and Kagome failed to mention it to her cousins, more interested in letting them know Kikyo was out there, drifting from what they could all tell. 

“This is what she’s chosen,” Midoriko repeated.

The eldest sister was concerned over Kikyo. She had no idea where her younger sister was to keep an eye on her, to protect her. Naraku could have done something to her. Sesshomaru could have done something to her. Anything could have happened to Kikyo and Midoriko felt helpless and useless for not being able to be there for her sister. All she had left in the world was her sisters and she had thrown one of them to the wind, left her to the elements. She was a horrible big sister. 

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Midoriko and Sesshomaru meet for the first time.


	17. Searching

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

17: Searching

Midoriko was not sure what she was doing, but she was doing it with a purpose. She marched into County lockup and went right to his cell. The smug bastard was on the bed, legs kicked up like he was on a lounge, with a smirk on his face.

“All right, you hanyou scum, where is my sister?” Midoriko demanded, glaring at him like the piece of garbage she was certain he was. She was worried about her sister and when she found out that Naraku was in jail, all she could think was that something happened to Kikyo. She tried calling her sister’s cell only to find out the number was no longer available. She checked all of Kikyo’s haunts to find out she had not been to any of them in weeks. The folks at the demon art museum remembered her fondly and were baffled over her absence in the past few weeks. 

Midoriko did not know what to think. She probably should have expressed her concern to Kaede, but she did not want her little sister fret over all of this. Kaede could have at least told Midoriko that Kikyo was fine because she knew where Kikyo worked.

Instead, Midoriko went to the one person she was certain knew where her sister was, namely Naraku. He was easy to find considering the fact that he had gotten arrested Friday afternoon. He was stuck there until Monday when his bail would be set.

“It is nice to see you, Midoriko,” Naraku said with mock pleasantness.

“Spare me. Where’s my sister?” she demanded, her fingers itched to destroy him, certain he did something to Kikyo. Her anxiety had been amplified ten fold when she found out one of the charges Naraku was held on was suspicion of murder. The charge was from a few years ago when he supposedly stole the identity of a man whose body they recently found in the mountains. He had drained the dead man’s bank account and liquidated most of his property. She did not want to know anything more about the crimes he might have committed. She just wanted to know where the hell her little sister was, wanted to make sure her sister was not added to his long list of crimes.

“What makes you think I know?” he asked with a teasing smile.

“Don’t mess with me, insect. If anything has happened to my sister—”

With a snort, he cut her off and dismissed her with a wave of his hand. “I know. Something along the lines of I’ll be reduced to a pile of ashes blowing in the wind. You do that and you’ll never find Kikyo.”

“Where is she?” Midoriko snarled. If she lost her sister to this scum, she would never forgive herself. She was supposed to protect Kikyo and she had abandoned her at a critical time. How could she leave her sister in the hands of this monster?

“To be quite truthful, I haven’t a clue. Have you tried the dog demon she enjoys bending over backwards for? Perhaps he has her. She could be assuming her position as his bitch at this very moment,” the half-demon commented with a shrug. Of course, he knew that was very unlikely. He suspected Kikyo was out there somewhere, clawing at the walls to forget she was starving. The idea warmed him.

Midoriko was silent. She considered he might be trying to get information from her by acting like he knew something about her sister’s affair. One false move and she could confirm his suspicions and put her sister in mortal danger. Danger she was sure Kikyo was in regardless if he did know about her affair or not.

“Don’t be so quiet now, Midoriko. I do know what she does with that flea-bitten mongrel. I know everything she does. I know her every move even now,” the half-breed stated.

“Then tell me where she is.”

“Like I said, the mutt she bends over backwards for might know. Have you asked him about her? She might be lying underneath him as we speak… or worse,” he commented.

“I hope they fry you,” she said. While the murder charge against him was the worst of the charges, his list of indictments was the longest she had ever seen. Street crime, white collar crime, and everything in between. If it had to do with money and violence, he was somehow involved in it. 

“When they set bail, it will be posted. If you see Kikyo before then, tell my dearest I’m coming to get her soon,” he informed her with a smirk.

“They will not set bail for you,” she stated. He was involved in a murder, after all.

He chuckled. “Oh, they will. After all, I am only a person of interest in the most serious one. Not an actual suspect and they have no proof I did anything. I will make bail and these charges will go away, as they always do. So, please, tell my dearest we will be together again and then we will never part after.” His eyes sparkled with evil and promise. He grinned, showing his teeth, like a crocodile.

Midoriko did not like the sound of that, nor did she like the look on his face. Her stomach twisted and turned to the point she feared she might vomit in front of him. She had to find her younger sister soon and make sure she was safe. She exited the jail and got on her phone. She sent a text message to Kaede that read, “What’s Rin’s number?”

-8-8-8-8-

Kaede was with Kikyo at the time her phone went off, sitting in the pizza shop not too far from where Kikyo crossed children on school days. Kaede did not check it right away after she saw it was a text message. She went back to telling Kikyo about a stunt Kohaku had pulled off a few days ago in the park. 

“Sounds difficult,” Kikyo commented with a small smile as Kaede finished up the story.

“It is. Me and Rin tried after him. We landed right on our backs. It hurt a lot,” Kaede reported with a laugh. 

“I’m sure it did.”

“I got a gnarly gash on my leg, too.”

Kikyo arched an eyebrow. “Should I see it?” 

Kaede shook her head. “Nah. I cleaned it and put a bandage over it until it scabbed over.”

“I see you don’t need me to see to your wounds anymore.”

A smile settled on Kaede’s face. “I’ll always need you, Kikyo.” 

Kikyo smiled back. “I will always need you, too.”

Kaede nodded and they were silent for a moment before she asked a question that bothered her a bit. “Hey, Kikyo, did you hear that Naraku got arrested?” She could not understand why Kikyo did not say anything about it. Was it possible her sister did not know? How? They lived together.

Kikyo blinked and leaned back in her chair, trying to play it cool. “No, I didn’t hear anything about that.” It was surprising, but not really. Naraku had always been involved in shady business, but she was shocked someone finally caught him on it. 

“Yeah, it was in the paper today. Midoriko was reading it and then she left the apartment in a rush.”

“Did you read it, too?” Kikyo asked. 

“Yeah, he’s wanted for a lot of stuff according to the paper. Said they had a rush of evidence to tie him to a lot of things, but especially embezzling funds and robbing clients at his job. So, you didn’t even know your husband was locked up?” the child inquired, her mouth twisting to the side. What was going with Kikyo to not even know that? 

“I’m not looking to keep tabs on him. He is not my husband anymore,” Kikyo informed her sister, downplaying the whole thing with a nonchalant wave of her hand.

Kaede’s mouth dropped open as her brain tried to wrap itself around this new information. It took her several seconds to get out a basic question. “When did that happen?” She was not sure if it was appropriate to express happiness with such news, but she was damn happy! She was fighting with herself not to grin up a storm or high-five Kikyo. It was about time he got out of her sister’s life.

“Quite a while ago,” Kikyo replied.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Kaede inquired.

Kikyo tilted her head to the side briefly. “We weren’t speaking at the time and now I’d like to forget it happened. I’d like to move on with my life.”

“Okay. So, are you gonna marry Sesshomaru now?” Kaede asked with hope in her voice. It would be so cool if they got married. Then she would be related to Rin and that would kick ass. It would also give meaning to Kikyo’s affair, maybe help her get over the idea Kikyo had done something so immoral. It could fix everything.

“Not likely.” She was still working on not thinking about Sesshomaru and failing miserably. At night, the shadows whispered what could have been and the daylight chased those thoughts and feelings away. But, they returned every quiet night.

Kaede’s brow furrowed. “Why not? I thought you loved him.”

Kikyo was reluctant to tell her sister what happened. It was not important and she would rather forget about that, too. Besides, she did not want Kaede’s opinion of her to somehow sink lower. So, she just let the subject disappear in the breeze.

While they sat in silence, Kaede decided to check her message. She craned an eyebrow when she saw what Midoriko wanted to know. She sent a response, providing the information Midoriko wanted. She supposed it was a slick move of her big sister to send a text because had Midoriko called, Kaede would have been asking all sorts of questions.

“I want you to be okay, Kikyo,” Kaede said. It was the truth. Her feelings for her sister remained jumbled, but she needed Kikyo to be fine.

Kikyo put her finger on her drink cup and drew a circle around the rim. “Everything is fine.” She dropped her hand as if it weighed too much.

Everything about Kikyo made it seem like her body was heavy, too heavy, especially when she should seem light after getting rid of Naraku. Kaede wished she could believe her sister was fine. Midoriko’s weird request did not make her feel better. What the hell was going on with her sisters?

-8-8-8-8-

Midoriko wasted no time using Rin’s number. The preteen was stunned to hear from her best friend’s big sister, but she was even more shocked to find out what Midoriko wanted from her. The older woman wanted her big brother’s number and she knew Midoriko did not mean Inuyasha. Rin did not argue and supplied the number. It was the wisest thing to do for the moment.

Midoriko then called up Rin’s brother. She was antsy as it rang a couple of times before he answered. She cut right to the chase.

“Listen, dog, where is my sister?” Midoriko demanded. By the end of the day, if she did not know where Kikyo, someone with demon blood would be dead at her hands.

“And this is?” Sesshomaru inquired in a more deadpan tone than usual.

“Midoriko. Where is my sister?” Her tone was even more deliberate and deadly.

“Ah, you’re Kikyo’s older sister.” He could only wonder why this woman contacted him. It was like he would never be rid of Kikyo. Was it a sign from the universe or a punishment?

“I am. Now, where is she?” she inquired.

“Why would I know, woman?” he countered. He did not want to have anything to do with that female.

“Is she there with you now?” Midoriko inquired, control almost gone, causing a wobble in her voice that sensitive ears picked up on. She never thought there would come a time when she wanted her sister to be with a demon. She _needed_ to know where Kikyo was immediately. Who knew what Naraku might do to her when he made bail and she was not in the mood to find out. 

“Of course not,” he answered. He could hear the slight panic in the woman’s voice. Was his angel in trouble?

“Do you know where she is?” Midoriko demanded, making sure her tone was hard. She did not want to show weakness to any demon.

“I do not. What’s wrong?” he asked. He did not want to seem concerned, but he was. How could he not be? His angel’s older sister called him for the first time, sounding a bit panicked while looking for her. Something was wrong with his angel.

“I just… I don’t know where she is.” The woman was close to panicking in her car. She felt like she was going to hyperventilate, finding it hard to breathe. She took a few deep breaths, but it did very little to calm her down. She clutched her steering wheel tightly and used all of her self-control to avoid crying. What if that monster had already done something with Kikyo? What if she was tied up in some basement? What if she was at the bottom of a lake? What if she was chopped up and fed to the poor?

“Well, when was the last time that you saw her?” he inquired. Why was she so panicked over not knowing where Kikyo was? Kikyo was an adult. She was allowed to do her own thing. Was Kikyo in danger? 

“Over a month ago.” 

“Sounds like you saw her about the same time I did,” he commented.

Midoriko’s eyes went wide. “What? You saw her so long ago? Aren’t you two involved?”

“Not since I found out she was also involved with my brother.” 

“You mean Inuyasha?” Midoriko scoffed. “Could you imagine? She’s not involved with him. They’re friends if anything at all, but nothing more.” Friends might even be a stretch.

Sesshomaru had suspected as much since figuring out the girl in the pictures with Inuyasha that seemed to be taken by a professional was not Kikyo. After meeting Kagome and staring at the pictures, it was almost obvious it was her in the pictures. Still, he told himself that Kikyo had some kind of involvement with Inuyasha as justification for saying the things he had said to his angel, not to mention threatening her life.

“Well, this proved fruitless. If you see her, tell her… tell her to call me,” Midoriko pled.

“Wait, why are you looking for her? What’s wrong? Is she in danger?” Sesshomaru inquired.

“She might be. I went to see Naraku after I find out about his arrest. I wanted to know if she was all right because I haven’t seen her in so long and I had no idea he was slimier than I first assumed. I don’t know what to expect from him, but I know his intentions for Kikyo have never been good. He laughed when I asked where she was and it was so dark. He wouldn’t tell me… he wouldn’t tell me where she was,” she explained. She was so close to tears, eyes burning with sorrow and concern.

What if that day Kikyo had pled for her help was their final conversation? What if the last time she saw her sister, touched her sister was the time that she slapped? A sob escaped her throat as she thought of that.

Sesshomaru heard the quiet wail and swallowed a lump in his throat. If her sister was so worked up and anxious, was his angel in serious danger? Naraku was behind bars, so he could not harm Kikyo… unless he was given bail. _Oh, great_ , he sighed mentally. Kikyo might be in danger. 

“Where are you right now?” Sesshomaru asked.

“Excuse me?” she countered.

“Your location, tell me. I’ll meet you and we can search together. I’m sure my nose will come in handy,” he explained. He could not believe he just volunteered his nose out loud to a human he had never met. He must really be worried, he considered.

“You’ll help?” she said as if she was shocked.

“I will,” he confirmed. He would not give Naraku the satisfaction of ruining Kikyo again. “So, your location?”

Midoriko told him where she was and he stated he would be at her in ten minutes. No more than ten minutes later, Sesshomaru pulled up behind Midoriko’s parked car. He exited his vehicle and walked up to hers. He found her slumped over the steering wheel. She was so distressed she did not even notice him.

“Midoriko?” he asked.

She blinked and picked her head up. “Yes?”

Sesshomaru was a bit taken aback, but managed to maintain his usual stoic expression. Kagome was not lying when she said they all looked alike. Midoriko looked just like Kikyo except with a different hairstyle. Their mothers must have had strong genes. It was not something Sesshomaru knew much about, being a good likeness of both parents, physically speaking.

“I’m Sesshomaru,” he introduced himself.

“Yes, I recognize you from the photos,” she replied as she took in the sight of him. 

“Photos?” he echoed. “What photos?”

“Oh, nothing,” she said as she realized she had said that out loud. She was not in the mood to explain that one. 

“Did Naraku send you photographs, too?” he asked.

She blinked. “Too?” 

“A little over a month ago, he sent me some photos of Kikyo with my stupid little brother,” he half-explained, wanting to find out more about the pictures sent to Midoriko.

An elegant black eyebrow arched. “Is that why you thought she was involved with Inuyasha?”

Sesshomaru did not answer that question. “Did he send you photos, too?”

“He did,” she affirmed.

Sesshomaru scowled and barely managed to hold in a growl. “We might have played right into that fool’s filthy hands. Now, we don’t know where Kikyo is, he obviously knows about what she’s done, and he could be doing anything to her.” 

He could not believe he allowed that disgusting hanyou to trick him. He should have figured out sooner that the person in those photos was not Kikyo. He should have spoken to her rather than threatened her. Now, she was probably alone, possibly in peril, and could be lost to him forever. _Fool_ , he berated himself. 

“You think he tricked us?” Midoriko asked, even though she was certain he had played them. It did not take away from what Kikyo did, but there was something wrong here if Naraku could use it all and toy with them.

“He turned us against her, so now she’s unguarded. Who knows what a sick bastard like him might do to her,” Sesshomaru replied. Just when he thought he rid the world of Naraku, he might have set Kikyo up to take the brunt of his insanity. 

“You’re right. We have to find her before he posts bail.”

“All right. Let’s go check all of her favorite places.”

“I’ve done that already,” she informed him. Did he think she had not conducted any sort of search before breaking down to call him? She was not an idiot.

“You didn’t do it with my nose around. I might be able to catch her scent somewhere.”

“All right, get in,” she told him. 

“Are you in a proper mental state to drive?” he inquired. 

“Yes, get in,” she insisted. Now was not the time to question if she could drive! They had to find Kikyo and quickly.

Sesshomaru did not argue and he got into the car on the passenger side. They started their search and hoped they found Kikyo before the day was out. If Naraku made bail, they did not even want to think about what might happen.

“So, I’m guessing you broke things off with my sister,” Midoriko commented as they sat at a red light.

He did not bother to look at her. “And that’s your business, how?”

“Just trying to understand why my sister would make another horrid decision in life,” she replied.

“Horrid? Seeing a demon,” he guessed. He knew how humans felt about demons, just like how demons felt about humans. Of course, he felt demons were justified in their beliefs.

“Not only that, but she is married. Sure, he’s the scum of the Earth, but she made the decision.” 

“So, she should continue to suffer it?”

“I see and you relieved that suffering?” Midoriko inquired. 

Sesshomaru’s jaw tightened. No, he had not relieved that suffering. He had merely added to it by making her into a liar, encouraging her to break her word, and then tossing her aside while calling her a whore and threatening to kill her. He had taken the only thing she had and ripped her apart. How was he any different from Naraku? He was not sure how he managed to not throw up at the realization.

“And you have not wronged your sister, I suppose,” the dog demon countered. 

 _Touché_ , she silently admitted. She had turned Kikyo away when she had come for help. She had even invaded Kikyo’s privacy by looking at those pictures and judged Kikyo from them, just as Naraku probably desired. She should not have paid the photos any mind. Kikyo was an adult and allowed to do what she wanted with the man she thought that she loved. The problem was just that at one point in time, she thought she loved Naraku, too. Was she supposed to just stand idly by as she watched her sister make mistake after mistake?

“Fine, neither us is perfect, despite what we wish to think,” Midoriko said. 

Sesshomaru nodded ever so slightly. His perfection had to be open to question if he had allowed himself to be tricked by Naraku. He had the perfect woman in his grips and he had allowed one set of sketchy photos from the vilest creature who had slithered across his path take the world from him. He doubted he had ever or would ever do something so stupid again. He hoped his stupidity did not cost Kikyo. 

-8-8-8-8-

Midoriko sighed as she entered the apartment, feeling weariness scratching at her bone marrow. Her search with Sesshomaru had been fruitless. He could not pick up Kikyo’s scent at any of her favorite places, so she had not been to them in at least a week. Midoriko had no idea where she might find her sister or what might have happened to her. What if Naraku had gotten to her already? 

“Kaede, are you here?” Midoriko called as she took her coat off.

“Living room,” Kaede answered. 

Midoriko pulled her shoes off and marched to the living room. There she discovered her little sister in pajamas and eating some leftovers. She flopped down on the sofa next to Kaede.

“Tough day?” the child answered. 

“Indeed,” the adult replied.

“What did you want Rin’s number for?”

“Nothing too important,” Midoriko replied. She did not want to alarm her little sister. The girl already had trouble sleeping, so she did not know what might happen to Kaede if she knew their sister might be in danger.

“She called me and told me you asked for her big brother’s number,” Kaede admitted.

“I did,” Midoriko confirmed. 

Kaede’s brow furrowed. “Why’d you call him? To yell at him?” 

“Why would I yell at him?” Midoriko asked.

“Because of what he did with Kikyo.”

Midoriko nodded, as that was a good reason, but perhaps he did not do anything to Kikyo. She did not have a horrible feeling about him like she had when she had met Naraku. She did not feel like he would injure her sister like she figured Naraku might do. If he had feelings about Kikyo, they probably were not unholy like Naraku’s feelings were. While he was a demon, she could not see Sesshomaru chaining Kikyo in a cellar, which she had always believed Naraku was capable of.

“I didn’t yell at him,” Midoriko replied.

“Then why did you call him? Tell me, big sister,” Kaede implored the eldest, looking up at Midoriko with big eyes.

“It’s nothing to worry about.”

“Does it have to do with Kikyo? Is it because she got a divorce?” the child inquired.

Midoriko’s attention snapped and she looked directly at Kaede. “A divorce? Kaede, how do you know that she got a divorce?”

Kaede yelped and jumped in her seat. She had said that because she thought Midoriko knew. Okay, well, that secret was not a secret anymore. She had to stop assuming her elder sisters knew everything, especially when talking to Midoriko about Kikyo.

“Have you spoken to Kikyo lately, Kaede?” Midoriko demanded, clutching her hands together into tight fists.

“Um…” the child stammered, eyes darting around the room as she tried to think of an answer that was not a lie.

“Kaede, tell me now. It’s important.” Midoriko stared at Kaede intensely, imploring her for the information.

Kaede nodded. “Yes, yes I have.”

Midoriko should have felt relief at that, knowing Kikyo was still alive, but she just felt more starved for information. “When? Where?”

“Today,” Kaede answered. She wondered why Midoriko was getting so fanatic over things. 

“Today!” Midoriko grabbed onto Kaede’s arm and held it in both hands.

“Yes,” Kaede confirmed. 

“Then she’s all right?” Midoriko asked and as soon as her little sister affirmed that, she breathed a sigh of relief, releasing Kaede. Well, at least she knew Kikyo was still breathing. That was good. But, they still needed to find her because who knew how long that might be, especially if Naraku made bail.

“Why? Is something wrong?” Kaede asked, her heart in her throat. Something had to be wrong if Midoriko wanted to know about Kikyo.

Midoriko shook her head. “No, everything is fine. Where did you speak with Kikyo?”

“Near that mini-mall,” the preteen answered.

“Which mini-mall?” 

“The one over by the number nine train,” Kaede replied.

“Does she live over there?” Why would Kikyo be over there?

“No, she works over there. I don’t know where she lives.” 

“Have you asked?” Midoriko asked. They were so close. Maybe Kaede had the information, but did not realize it.

“Yes, but she never answers. She always says something like it’s nothing for me to worry about.”

Midoriko sighed in despair, her shoulders dropping in defeat. She still did not know where Kikyo was. Wait, but maybe Kaede would meet up with her again. 

“Kaede, are you going to see her again?” the eldest inquired.

“Maybe tomorrow. I think she’ll wait around for me. She did that today. She misses us so much, big sis,” Kaede reported.

“I’m sure she does.” Midoriko’s stomach twisted. Of course Kikyo missed them and it was her fault. She turned Kikyo away.

“Do you… miss her, too?” the youngest sister asked. 

“I do,” Midoriko admitted, massaging the area over her heart.

“It’s okay. She’s not mad or anything. You’re not mad, right?”

“No, not anymore.” 

Midoriko silently admitted to herself that Sesshomaru was not so bad for a demon. He was definitely better than Naraku, not that it took much to be better than the damned half-breed. He also seemed genuinely concerned about her sister, even though he was attempting to control himself while he was with her. She could understand that. He had done a better job than she did at remaining in control. She had nearly broken down into tears when they did not find Kikyo. He had actually been rather supportive of her and assured her they would find Kikyo before Naraku did.

Midoriko decided to call Sesshomaru later that night to let him know Kaede knew where to find Kikyo. He pretended not to care, but he was not pulling it off well in her opinion. She did not call him on it.

“Where?” he said.

“We can go together,” she replied.

“Where?” he repeated, his voice insistent now. She suspected he wanted to sniff around for Kikyo, but she did not have an exact address to give him. Kaede had not been able to give her an exact address, just the vague location.

“We can go together. I will call you tomorrow.” She disconnected the call before he could object.

-*-(Next day)-*-

Kikyo left the tiny apartment she rented. She was pleased to find out Naraku was having legal problems. She figured he would have his hands tied with that and she would be able to start rebuilding her life. She was already going to go see about a position in a hospital. She was close to smiling at the thought of being able to heal people again. Maybe everything would work out fine despite all that happened, she considered.

Once she finished with hospital business, she decided to go see if Kaede was waiting for her. She made it halfway to her destination before she ran into the last person she wanted to see. It was like she would never be rid of him. 

“Naraku,” Kikyo pretty much growled the name. He was in front of her, blocking her path.

“Hello, dearest. You don’t look happy to see me,” Naraku remarked with a smirk. 

“I thought you had been arrested,” she commented.

“Yes, but I had a bail hearing this morning and posted bond. Great legal system we have in this country,” he replied with a chuckle.

“Well, good for you,” she said in a clipped tone. “What happened to your arm?” she inquired as if she really cared. She was curious as to who or what caught up with him.

“Nothing too serious,” he answered while glancing down at the stump he now sported. Damn that dog and his poisonous claws. He would get Sesshomaru back after he got everything else done.

“That is a shame,” she commented before trying to walk by him. He turned to walk with her, though.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he inquired.

“To live my life, not that it’s any of your business anymore. Or have you forgotten we are no longer married?” she pointed out.

“That’s just a legal technicality. You do still belong to me,” he replied. He was a bit stunned to find she was still trying to go on. He had been so certain on her own she would crumble, but it did not bother him that he had predicted her mood incorrectly. It just meant there was more of her to break and he enjoyed watching her shatter.

“I belong to no one,” she stated.

“You’re mine, Kikyo,” he growled and then he grabbed her, holding her just above her elbow.

“Let me go,” she commanded.

“I will do nothing of the sort,” he replied, forcing her into a narrow alleyway they were close to. He was not going to let her think she could order him around and he would let her know she belonged to him. There were no questions about that.

“Release me now,” she ordered.

He obliged her that time and shoved her away from him into the wall of the dead-end alley. She grunted upon impact with the bricks, feeling her bones shake and her teeth rattled in her skull. He hoped she was hurt and understood his strength. He could have put her threw that wall if he felt like it.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Kikyo demanded, glaring at him with fire in her eyes.

“You’re still mine, Kikyo, and you’re always going to be mine. You’re coming with me,” Naraku informed her.

“I’m not going anywhere with you. You shouldn’t be going anywhere, anyway. Surely you have a court date you cannot miss,” she said.

“You’re coming with me.”

“I will not go anywhere with you.”

“You don’t seem to understand you don’t have a choice, dearest,” he commented with his usual arrogant smirk. He pointed his good arm at her and spikes grew from his limb toward her.

“Naraku, I will not let you harm me,” she informed him.

“How fast are your hands, Kikyo? Would you be able to grab me before I impaled you on my fingertips? Do you know how long I’ve wanted your blood to touch my skin?” he inquired.

Kikyo was not sure if she would be able to stop him, but she cracked her knuckles, anyway. She would not go down without a fight. She would subdue him or die trying.

-8-8-8-8-

“Are you sure this is where you usually meet her?” Midoriko asked Kaede as the two sisters stood on a corner. Sesshomaru was with them.

“Yeah, and she’s usually here before me,” Kaede answered. She had been stunned to say the least when Sesshomaru joined them. She wanted to know what was going on and why her big sister and Sesshomaru were joining forces to find Kikyo. She had asked several times if Kikyo was in trouble or something like that and they both assured her that it was nothing big.

“She has been here recently,” the dog demon confirmed. He could pick up Kikyo’s scent around the place underneath all of the other scents covering the area.

“But, where is she now?” Midoriko wondered aloud, scanning the area. There was no sign of Kikyo. She turned to her little sister. “Kaede, are you certain she doesn’t have a cell number?”

“Yeah, she said she can’t afford the bill at the moment,” the child answered.

“Wait, I think I have something,” Sesshomaru informed them as he discreetly sniffed the air; he would never blatantly or noticeably smell the air like his brother did when hunting for people. He frowned as he caught whiff of Kikyo’s fragrance coming downwind, but it was mixed with a foul air. 

“What’s wrong?” Midoriko inquired when she noticed him making that face, like the air was tainted.

“I smell Naraku with her,” he answered.

“He got to her first?” Midoriko gasped, putting her hand over her mouth.

“What? What happened?” Kaede asked.

“I’ll get to her and make sure that fool doesn’t harm her,” Sesshomaru vowed and he took off in a ball of light.

“Kaede, wait here,” Midoriko ordered, charging off after the nobleman. She would follow Sesshomaru’s aura until she sensed her sister’s spiritual signature. 

“What’s going on?” Kaede called to the sky as her eldest sister ran off.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the end. Will they make it to Kikyo in time?


	18. Let’s Start Over

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters.

18: Let’s Start Over

Kikyo watched as Naraku tried to taunt her by aiming a threatening spike at her. She waited for him to launch whatever attack he had in mind, needing to see some movement to predict how she might counter. The spike was one of the hanyou’s fingers he manipulated, as he could do with his entire body. He seemed to want to see her squirm before testing which one of them had faster reflexes. He believed he would have her impaled before she had a chance to harm him, not that he believed she would even do that. And even if she did, he believed she was not powerful enough to truly hurt him. 

“Come on, sweetheart. We both know you don’t want to hurt me,” he said with a laugh.

“Don’t test me,” she replied.

Naraku let the thorn fly forward and it crashed against a spiritual barrier. He was stunned Kikyo could do such a thing. How could she be in such control of her spiritual energy? It was not like the modern world had use for priestesses. He growled and pushed forward, trying to break through. She grunted as she tried to keep the barrier up. He was stronger than she gave him credit for, but she refused to kowtow to him.

Naraku smirked as he released more spikes and they banged against the barrier. She growled, sweat dotting her brow as she dug in deep. He snarled and put more force into the spikes, stressing the barrier to the point of collapse. Kikyo gasped, both because her barrier had been breached and he managed to impale her. He had thorns in her right shoulder and arm, pinning her to the wall behind her. His hand was not unharmed with light beams cracking through his limb, before they became wounds. He did not mind that there were cuts on his hand, blood oozing down to the concrete.

“It does feel special having your blood on my fingertips,” he commented with a wicked smile. Her blood trumped his own, tickling his insides. “I wonder what it tastes like. I guess I’ll find out soon enough.”

“Don’t think so highly of yourself yet, Naraku,” she replied as she grabbed his wrist.

Kikyo pumped Naraku so full of spiritual energy that she burned his remaining hand off. His whole body glowed and his hair stood on end as he screamed in agony and terror. He fell back while she ripped the hand from her flesh and tossed it to the ground.

She turned her attention to him as he started laughing, dark and demented. She wondered what was so funny and then she noticed what was seeping out of his charred stump, miasma. She looked at her wounds and noticed they were purple-ish in color, even through her clothes. The bastard had poisoned her when he put his injured hand into her flesh with the miasma, leaking into her system.

“You filthy wretch!” she snarled as she tried to advance on his, but her arm pulsed with agony and she fell back against the wall. Blood gushed from her wounds and her body throbbed. Growling, she tried to push back onto her feet. She would not die like this, not on her knees before her ex-husband. Her muscles felt like they were dipped in acid, though, and she could hardly stand.

Naraku continued to laugh. “I could cure you, but you have to come with me. If I can’t have you, no one can. You belong with me. You belong to me.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Sesshomaru stated as he stepped into the alleyway, causing attention to be turned to him.

“Sessho,” Kikyo whispered, her heart thumping with hope. What was he doing here?

“Are you all right?” Sesshomaru asked Kikyo as he marched into the alley toward her. He ignored the half-breed for the moment. He would deal with him soon enough, but he needed to check on Kikyo. She was wounded, after all.

“Look out!” Kikyo warned the dog demon as Naraku tried to impale the dog demon with spikes from the remains of his arm.

Sesshomaru calmly turned around and countered the hanyou’s attack with his energy whip. He cut through the remainder of Naraku’s limb, burning cleanly through, so no miasma oozed out from the wound. He growled and was about to march over to the hanyou, who seemed so anxious to die in his opinion, but Kikyo collapsed.

“Kikyo,” Sesshomaru gasped and he was by her side in a split second. “What’s wrong?” he demanded. He could see she was wounded, but she was stronger than to buckle from one blow. What was he not seeing? He sniffled. He smelled her blood and something else, something sinister.

“Don’t worry about me. Don’t let him attack you, too,” she replied, sweat soaking her clothing already. It felt like her joints locked up and fire burned down her every nerve.

“Do you think I’m worried about that flea? He couldn’t harm this Sesshomaru. Now, tell me what’s wrong with you,” he commanded her. He needed to know, so he would know how to help her.

“I’ve poisoned her, mutt. If I can’t have her, she’ll die. Simple as that,” Naraku announced with his chin tilted proudly into the air.

“As if I would allow someone like you to continue to taint my angel,” the dog demon declared and he charged Naraku in pure anger.

The half-demon tried to flee. He was in no shape to face Sesshomaru. He got up and ran to the mouth of the alley and he went right into Midoriko. She grabbed him by his shoulders and noticed her fallen sister almost immediately. Blood stained Kikyo’s shirt, sweat dripped from her face, and her skin was oddly purple.

Midoriko knew Naraku had something to do with Kikyo’s diminished state, so she let him have it. She sent a good jolt of spiritual energy through his body, enough to cause him to drop to the ground when she let him go. His body was smoking, but she did not care about him. She stepped over him and rushed to Kikyo’s side.

“Kikyo,” Midoriko said.

“Big sister.” Kikyo forced out a weak smile. She was so glad Midoriko was speaking to her again.

“What happened? What did he do? Where are you injured?” the eldest inquired, hands hovering just above Kikyo. She wanted to touch her younger sister, but she knew better.

“Poison in my wounds,” Kikyo replied in a low voice. She coughed, black phlegm flew from her mouth and dripped from her nose.

Midoriko turned to Sesshomaru, grabbing his arm. “Sesshomaru, we have to get her to a hospital!” She knew enough about Naraku’s powers to know Kikyo did not have much time, if any at all. She would never be able to forgive herself if Kikyo died.

“I can take her,” he replied. He could move faster than any ambulance if he wanted to and he would do that to have his angel’s life.

“All right, let me purify her wounds first,” Midoriko said. It was the only way Kikyo would be able to make it to the hospital alive.

“Do it,” he replied.

Midoriko went to work on Kikyo, hoping to get whatever poison Naraku used on her out of the younger woman’s system. Sesshomaru watched the sisters for a moment and then he turned back to the front of the alley. Naraku climbed to his feet.

“Impossible,” the sisters muttered together when they saw Naraku. How could he have survive a blast from both of them?

“It seems you just want me to kill you,” Sesshomaru said to Naraku. He was happy to oblige. 

“Kikyo is mine, mutt,” Naraku growled, his hair a mess, his skin like charcoal, and blood oozing from his body. His body was still smoking for the treatment Midoriko gave him. He suspected had he been a lesser demon, she would have fulfilled all of the threats she had made over the years about reducing him to a pile of ashes. But, then again, Kikyo probably would have done the same earlier when she took his hand off if he was a weaker hanyou. It would seem the sisters did not believe he was a superior being and that worked out for him.

“If you think you can, come take her,” Sesshomaru dared the fool.

Naraku seemed to take the dog demon up on his offer and strained to create some more spikes from his body. As soon as he started his attack, Sesshomaru was on him within the blink of an eye. The nobleman put his hand through Naraku’s chest. The hanyou began laughing and the dog demon wondered what was so funny about being impaled on his arm. Then he found out what had Naraku so tickled. Sesshomaru found out the poison he used on Kikyo came from his own disgusting body.

“You’ll die just like her,” Naraku informed the full demon as his venom tried to crawl into Sesshomaru’s veins.

“Your stench has no affect on me,” Sesshomaru replied as he released his own poison into Naraku through his claws. His toxins could defeat whatever the hanyou threw at him.

“What?” the hanyou growled.

“As if I would allow a weak-willed fool to be the death of me,” the platinum-haired male replied.

Sesshomaru gracefully yanked his hand out of Naraku, dropping the hanyou to the ground once again. The half-breed coughed, blood and guts coming from his mouth. He felt like all of his insides were being turned into powder, dissolved into nothing. Sesshomaru was about to turn his attention back to the sisters when he heard the sound of approaching sirens. The police showed up moments later. Apparently, someone noticed all of the commotion in the alley and called it in. Whatever nonsense they would bring had better not delay Kikyo getting treatment.

-8-8-8-8-

Kikyo’s eyes fluttered open. She groaned softly while silently noting she was in some pain, beyond the dim lights hurting her eyes. It was muted, but she could feel it all over, down to the roots of her hair. She stared at the ceiling since her head faced that direction.

“You’re finally awake,” Midoriko said, a smile in her voice.

“Sister?” Kikyo asked, her voice scratchy and low, as she turned her head to the sound of her older sister. Taking in the background, she was able to tell she was in a hospital bed.

“We were all worried about you,” Midoriko replied, moving closer to be seen.

“All?” the younger female echoed.

“Auntie and her family are here. Kagome dragged Inuyasha, who claims he doesn’t care as long as you’re alive. Kaede is here and Rin is keeping her company.”

“I thought… I thought everyone was done with me,” Kikyo said. Her heart thumped at the notion of not being abandoned. Hope rose over the pain, but she tried to stop it. Hope had gotten her nowhere before, except having a breakdown outside her sister’s door.

“No, we’re all here for you, little sister,” Midoriko promised. She put a hand on the bed, nervous about touching Kikyo. She was not sure how Kikyo would react and she did not want to hurt Kikyo further.

Kikyo wanted to ask about Sesshomaru. She could not recall exactly what happened, but she remembered him being there. Had she imagined that? She decided against asking. She thought it might upset her big sister and she was happy Midoriko was there, speaking to her again.

“Kikyo, I’m sorry for abandoning you when you needed me, when you needed _us_. I shouldn’t have judged you. You do love him, after all,” Midoriko apologized. 

“You don’t have to apologize. I went about all of this wrong,” Kikyo said. They were both wrong as far as she was concerned, but she could forgive and forget if it meant she had her sisters back.

“You did all you could. If you had asked for a divorce, Naraku would have never agreed. He would have never allowed you to leave him of your own will. I don’t even understand how you’re divorced now.”

Kikyo squinted as she tried to remain awake and focused. “His idea, part of some grand scheme.” 

“I’m sure it was and I dare not think of the outcome he had in mind. I’ve always known he was diabolical and it’s wrong of me to hold that against you because you wanted to see good in him. It’s wonderful for you to look for good in people, be it Naraku or Sesshomaru. You should be allowed to seek peace and remain with it where you find it. It was wrong of me to make it seem as if you should be content with your misery. I don’t wish that on you, sister,” the eldest explained.

Kikyo inhaled deeply as she took in those words. “Thank you.”

Midoriko shook her head. “There is no reason to thank me, especially since it took me too long to come to that conclusion. I never should have given up on you, especially while you were in Naraku’s grip.”

“Speaking of Naraku, what happened to him?”

“I’ll tell you once you’re totally better,” Midoriko replied.

Kikyo nodded and accepted that. Throughout the day, everyone who was at the hospital for her visited her. They all seemed so genuinely glad she was all right and it threw her off balance, but pain medication helped numb even that. She was glad they were not upset with her. 

Kikyo glanced out of the window in the room when she was alone. She thought her family went home because visiting hours were over, but they gave her sometime alone for a specific reason. She turned her head to face the door as she heard it open. Sesshomaru stepped in, holding a bouquet of red and white roses.

“Sessho…” Kikyo said in a low voice. Her heart sped up, anticipation and fear warring with each other, but making her heart flutter.

“Good evening. Are you feeling better?” he inquired as he walked over to her. He handed her the flowers, which earned him a confused look from the bedridden female.

She squinted at the bouquet, suspicious of the gift, and not sure if she should accept it. “What are you doing here? Why are you giving me flowers?”

Taking a deep breath, he squared his shoulders, bracing himself for the worst. “I thought it would be a step in the right direction for you to one day find it in your big heart to forgive me for being a fool.”

Kikyo was so stunned she was speechless. She could not believe he was admitting to being something other than being perfect. She stared at the dog demon, mouth slightly open. She did not know what else to do. 

“Should I bring a bigger bouquet?” he inquired since she was not speaking. He had purchased the largest one possible, but he supposed he could purchase a few more and just put them together if that would make her feel better. If not flowers, he would have to think bigger. What type of art would he need to purchase for her to understand his apology was sincere?

“No,” she finally managed. “I thought… I thought you hated me now.” He had threatened to kill her, after all. While he was a man of few words, he had been very clear about where they stood. 

He shook his head. “I could never hate my angel. I made a bad decision on many things.” One he hoped he would be allowed to rectify.

“What things?” 

“Well, let’s just say, you and your cousin look disturbing alike,” he said with a frown.

“What does that have to do with anything?” she asked. She thought on it for a few seconds and then she remembered who her cousin dated. “Did you see Kagome with Inuyasha and assume it was me?” It would not be the first time.

“I did,” he confirmed.

Kikyo could not help it, she started laughing. How many times had there been a case of mistaken identify with her cousin? Sometimes, people thought she was Kagome or that Kagome was her. There were also occasions when she was mistaken for her older sister or the other way around. People usually had to get very close up to tell which one of them it was if they did not know all of the relatives well. It had never done this much damage, though.

“Is it so funny?” Sesshomaru asked. He thought her laughter was a better sign than anything else that she could have done, but it still did not fill him with confidence and he was not sure how to react to the feeling or the sound.

“You hurt me so badly over something that could have so easily been shown false had you spoken to me. It is funny like when a clown dies,” she answered.

“I fail to see how that is funny,” he commented.

“Indeed, I agree with you. I fail to see how it is funny. It was such a harsh pain that all I can do is laugh at the tragedy,” Kikyo explained.

Sesshomaru was a bit taken aback by that. It would seem he was not going to get out of things so easily. He supposed he deserved such a thing. But, he needed to earn her back or he would regret his actions for the rest of his life. Of course, even if she did come back to him, he would constantly think about to the moment where he almost ruined it all over idiocy.

“You can leave now, Sesshomaru,” Kikyo said in an almost curt manner.

“Wait,” he objected.

“There’s no reason for you to be here. You so easily thought so little of me. How can there be anything between us if you would think I could be with your little brother while being with you? This whole thing started off wrong and it should just die,” she stated.

“Don’t say that!” he snarled, stepping closer. He would not give up on them without a fight. She was the best thing to happen to him. She completed his world. It was impossible to give up on that. “This was far from wrong. I made a mistake, but that doesn’t make what’s between us wrong.”

“You assumed I cheated on you with your little brother. I’m sure the fact that I was married and cheating with you influenced that idea. You probably assumed it is so easy for me to do such a thing.”

“I do not think that. I let him get to me, all right. I should have spoken to you rather believing pictures.”

“Pictures?” she echoed. “Naraku sent them?” She was willing to bet it was him.

“Yes.”

“And you believed something Naraku sent you over me. That’s even worse,” she pointed out. Everything they had was a lie if it could be toppled so easily. He did not feel for her what she had felt for him. He did not believe in her, know her, or care about her. She was a trophy to him, like she was to Naraku. Never again.

“Kikyo,” he said, searching his mind for someway to keep her in his life. “I admit I was wrong and I judged you most unfairly. It was a foolish thing to do, but I would never make such a mistake again. I don’t think lowly of you.” Even when he thought she had been with Inuyasha, he could not put her out of his mind and could not stop thinking of her as an angel. Now, the idea of being without her made his stomach cramp.

Kikyo looked skeptical on that. She felt like if she continued anything with Sesshomaru, he would always be suspicious of her. He would always wonder where she was going, who she was with, and what she did when she was alone. He would never trust her and they could not have anything if he did not trust her. She was not sure if she could trust him. He hurt her so easily. How would she ever

“Angel, I love you,” he announced and that was second big shock he delivered to her.

Kikyo gasped and was pretty sure her heart stopped beating for a few seconds. He loved her? How she would have longed to hear those words a month ago. Now, it only made things worse.

“Sessho, don’t.” She needed him gone, so she could move on with her life, rebuild things with her family.

“I love you,” he repeated forcefully. He needed her to believe him, to understand him, to know this was not something he said lightly. It should have changed everything.

“No, you don’t,” she objected and she shook her head. He could not love her. He did not trust her, so he could not love her and it was not fair of him to lie like that.

“I do,” he vowed and he leaned down to embrace her. He held her carefully, but she struggled in his arms.

“No, you don’t,” she repeated with tears falling from her eyes. She was hurting her injured shoulder trying to escape him, but it did not match the pain inside. How could he do this to her? How could he hurt her so much again?

“Be still,” he ordered. “And do not cry. I do love you. You are my angel and I will cherish, protect, and love you always,” he promised.

She shook her head, certain it was untrue. “You say that now when you already hurt me.”

“And I will say it everyday and mean it from this moment onward. I was a fool. I admit that. I will never make such a mistake again, knowing what you mean to me. I will work for my whole life to get you to forgive me for what I did, just stay with me. I need you. You are the best thing in my life aside from my little sister,” he informed her.

“You don’t mean that,” she said with tears continuing down her face.

Leaning down, he nuzzled her neck. “I do. I will be your eternal slave if that would make up for my actions.” He meant those words.

Kikyo could not believe what she heard. The proud dog demon had just offered himself up as a slave to a lowly, little human? Even if he did not mean the words literally, they were still powerful. The fact that he said them while nuzzling her made things hit her harder. He was Sesshomaru, after all. The greatest thing ever made as far as he was concerned and he had offered himself to her like a little puppy.

“Sessho…” she whispered. She was not sure what she wanted to say. 

“Make a command and I will do it,” he promised her.

“I don’t want that,” she replied.

“What do you want? What can I do to get you to stay with me? I want you to stay with me,” he said, nose pressed against her throat. “I’ll be so good to you, angel. Just give me another chance. I’ll be so good to you. I will never take you for granted ever again.”

Kikyo bit her lip. She could hear the distress in his voice and the honesty in his words. She could only answer him in one way because she loved him, too.

“Sessho, you don’t have to do anything. You don’t have to give me anything. Just love me like this always, please,” she requested. She could feel her heart settle, like that was the answer she was supposed to give. Her brain was not so sure, but she would allow it time to pass judgment. Her heart was content, though.

“I can and will,” he promised and he gave her a tender kiss.

They both missed the feel of the others lips and thoroughly enjoyed the sweet embrace. Sesshomaru pulled away quickly, though. He did not think she needed to get too excited in her current state. He noticed she was crying new tears, so he wiped them away with a gentle sweep of his hand. She turned into his hand and they stared at each other in silence for a long moment.

“So, what happened with Naraku?” Kikyo asked.

“I killed him,” Sesshomaru answered with a slight shrug.

“You killed him?” she inquired in disbelief. She could not believe how easily he admitted that.

“I did,” he confirmed.

“What happened? I don’t really remember,” she said. Surely Sesshomaru had reason to kill Naraku.

“Well, it would seem your older sister had attempted to kill him with her spiritual powers after she discovered you in the alley, bleeding from wounds inflicted by that damned half-breed. I would have dispatched him before that, but you were so hurt I went to your aid first. He unwisely remained alive after Midoriko’s treatment of him and I finished it. He was not even dust by the time the police arrived,” Sesshomaru reported like it was an everyday event.

“The police?” She did not remember police. But, then again, she was foggy on how Naraku wounded her.

“Yes, the police arrived and they are the reason I wasn’t here sooner. I had to give a statement.”

“Are you in trouble?” she asked. He had to be in trouble. He killed someone.

“No,” he answered bluntly. He was not in trouble. Naraku’s demise had been ruled a justifiable homicide once he explained what happened and there were a few other witnesses who had backed up his story. Had Naraku not been a half-demon, charges of manslaughter might have been brought up, but two demons going against each other was different from two humans going at each other. It helped that people saw Naraku attack Kikyo.

“Then, it’s all over? I don’t have to worry about him again?” she inquired as if she did not understand. It seemed so long since she lived a life where he was not looming in the background, waiting to cast darkness over her.

“No, you don’t.”

Kikyo smiled. She knew it was wrong to smile because someone was dead, but she had her life back. She could finally go back to working and she would never have to look over her shoulder for that lying, insane hanyou. With a sigh, she felt her body relax, letting go long lived tension.

-*-(New day)-*-

“Sessho, come on or we’ll be late,” Kikyo called into his workroom.

Kikyo stepped onto the room to try to pry him away from his painting. She did not live with him, but they planned to move in sometime soon. She thought they needed to start their relationship over and rebuild, which he agreed to because he felt he owed her. So, for the past few months, they had been trying to recreate their relationship and believed they were doing a decent job.

“One moment,” Sesshomaru replied as he put the finishing touches on his latest painting. He had done a portrait of a white dog looking into the midnight sky, seeing the silhouette of an angel. It was not his best piece, but he was quite inspired by them.

“Now, or we’ll be late,” she pointed out.

“All right,” he sighed.

“Don’t make that noise. It’ll be fun,” she assured him.

“I doubt it.”

Kikyo offered him a smile for his troubles and sat down on his lap. He turned his attention to her as she made herself comfortable against him. He rested his hand on her hip and lightly caressed her. He felt so fortunate to have her with him and he always felt that way. He did his best to make sure she knew that, too.

“You promised,” she reminded him.

“I know,” he replied. He would promise her the moon and do everything in his power to make it happen. He wished she wanted the moon this time. 

“It’ll be fine. You promised you’d come with me. So, get up and let’s go,” she said.

Sesshomaru groaned, but he did not argue. He had better ideas on how they should spend Kikyo’s day off, though. She was now a doctor at a small clinic and she thoroughly enjoyed her job. She got weekends off most of the time, but sometimes, she went in to help out. She always said that people got sick no matter what the day and she wanted to help. He respected that, supported it whenever she seemed to need it.

“I have to remember to stop promising you things,” Sesshomaru said with a sigh.

Kikyo offered him a small smile for his troubles. The dog demon got up, careful not to let Kikyo fall. He went to change his clothes and they finally left. Sesshomaru drove them to Kikyo’s aunt’s home. They were getting together for a family barbecue. They pulled up just time to almost hit Rin with the car.

“Rin, what do you think you’re doing?” Sesshomaru inquired as he parked.

“I was going to jump that garbage can over there until you showed up,” Rin answered while pointing to the can on the sidewalk, but the ramp was in the street. Her brother turned to look and his jaw tensed. She never would have made it in his opinion. 

“Where’s Inuyasha? Why isn’t that fool watching you?” he asked.

“Because I’m thirteen,” she answered.

“That doesn’t excuse either of you,” he stated. “Now, where is that fool?” he pondered aloud as he marched off into the backyard to give their brother a piece of his mind.

“It is so tough being the middle child. You do know you got Inuyasha into trouble, right?” Kikyo asked Rin.

“Hey, if not me, he’d do something stupid sooner or later,” the child replied with a shrug.

“I suppose. Where’s Kaede? I’m stunned she’s not out here egging you on to break your neck,” Kikyo replied.

“Oh, she was. She went to get some lemonade and I was doing a practice to see if I could do it before she came back,” Rin explained.

Kikyo shook her head. “How about you forget the stunt and go get some lemonade, too, while your big brother is around?” she suggested. She could hear Sesshomaru’s blood pressure rising and she wanted him relax as much as he could at her family gathering.

“I guess,” Rin sighed. She did not want to stress Sesshomaru out or he would start treating her like a child and she did not want that to happen.

The two walked into the backyard where Kikyo greeted Kaede with a hug. Kaede and Rin then walked off to get into trouble more than likely. Kikyo spotted Sesshomaru, who was scolding Inuyasha about letting Rin out of his sight. Kikyo’s family and Sesshomaru’s family were at the barbecue because everyone was either friends already or getting to know each other.

Kikyo spotted her sister speaking with Izayoi. She tried not to be rude and interrupt the conversation, but Midoriko saw her and greeted her with a short wave. The sisters embraced and then Kikyo turned her attention to Izayoi. It was not their first time meeting and they had quickly grown to like each other, despite the fact that Izayoi knew Kikyo had been carrying on an affair with Sesshomaru, but that all seemed like such a long time go. Everyone seemed to forgive and forget. The trio struck up a conversation.

Sesshomaru was done with his brother after a while and was approached by his father. His father was finally all right with him being with Kikyo now that he had come to see she was an outstanding female and better understood her situation from before. He accepted her as she was.

The barbecue was a good gathering. Somehow during the time, Sesshomaru got stuck working the grill and Kagome made sure to get a picture of that. She also had to make sure to get a picture of Sesshomaru and Kikyo sitting together in a corner, trying to be alone for a moment. She got plenty of pictures of everyone getting along, looking like one big, weird, but happy family.

-8-8-8-8-

“I told you that would be fun,” Kikyo said to Sesshomaru as they settled down into his bed. She had a deal with him to spend the night as long as he went to the cookout.

“It wasn’t wholly unpleasant,” he replied as he gathered her into his arms. He always slept soundly with her pressed against him. When she stayed at her apartment, he worried over her being on her own.

“You are too much,” she stated in an amused tone, kissing his cheek. “It was rather funny to see you cooking, though. I’m sure you had fun because you didn’t complain about it.” The fact that Sesshomaru did not complain about making “human food” spoke volumes. His actions always shouted things his words never would, which was why she was still with him. She knew from his actions how he felt about her, how he cared for her. 

“I merely wanted everything to be perfect,” he defended himself.

“Uh-huh,” she teased, wiggling against him. 

“I do want everything to be perfect,” he insisted and he placed a small kiss to her lips.

“Let’s work on getting close enough to perfect,” she remarked. 

He nodded and leaned in for another kiss, a deeper one. They were working toward perfect and he was certain they would get there sometime soon. After all, everything was working well between them, even better than before. They were in love and they could now express that whenever they felt like it, which helped a great deal. Although, they were both against anything over the top and they did not do public displays of affection. Still, the fact that they could be open with their relationship worked wonders. They worked.

-8-8-8-8-

The end. 

I hope you enjoyed the story. There is a sequel called _[Out in the Open](https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3291263/1/Out-in-the-Open)_. I’m returning to padded cell. Thank you for reading. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you wanna see more of my fanfics, they're all at FFN under [StarvingLunatic](https://www.fanfiction.net/~starvinglunatic). If you wanna see some original stories, you can look at FP under [StarvingLunatic](https://www.fictionpress.com/u/576301/).
> 
> Come say hi to me on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/SL-Kassidy-482097488469386/).


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